Helllooo Harry Potter! - Book 2
by chocolate splash
Summary: When Harry returns back for his second year, he didn't expect an incompetent teacher, enormous snake or abused friends. So what does he do? Of course, he counters them all in his own dashing way. One cannot help but love him for it. Powerful!Harry, slash&straight!Harem, lots of Romance, Good!Petunia&Duddley, Never!Harry's pov
1. First Summer Vacation

**_CHAPTER : FIRST SUMMER VACATION_**

**Update 26/02/2020: I have decided to post the story year-wise, so this is just division of the chapters and not a new story. Please read "****Helllooo Harry Potter!- Book 1" ****before you read this. **

**Warnings: Not my story, not that serious one either. Harry's Harem with both straight and slash members. This story will be M-rated, thought not until the next book. Right now, it will be more like between K+ and T.**

**psss... since I have no betas, please do point out if I have any mistakes in the chapters.**

**_Petunia's pov_**

The first summer vacation of my two kids had finally arrived. Harry came home first and Duddley four days later. I had missed both of them throughout the year. I would look out of the window to see them play, or looking to the stairs to see if they would come down to eat; and then realize they were in hostels this year. Richard must have had either a headache or a good laugh seeing me fetter over the how we would spend the time with the boys during the vacation.

And then a month before their vacation, I got a letter from Dudley saying that he had been selected for the national juniors team for football. Their team had won the preliminaries and had to go to Romania for two weeks for their matches. We immediately changed our plans to include Romania in it for those two weeks. When I sent that news to Harry, he sent me a whooping howler screaming in joy and celebrating. He had told that howlers were used to send reprimands or orders, but I guess it could be used this way too. What interested me were the several voices behind me, of his friends. I was glad to know he made some true ones there.

Since the day my boys have been back, there has been complete ruckus around the house; and I have enjoyed every minute of it. What was endearing to watch was Richard participating in it along with the boys. I always feel proud of leaving Vernon when I watch the three of them. Now we are on the plane to Romania, for the matches. If Dudley's team keeps winning, there would be five matches including the finals. I was seated with Richard, Dudley with his team, and Harry was okay sitting with a red-headed boy. What concerned me was the questioning looks that boy kept giving Harry, but Harry was asleep as soon as the plane took off, so he was not bothered.

The matches went well, with all the cheering and groaning all around. Harry once again got into his cheering bad boy get up, with his bandanna, torn jeans and half tucked shirt. I find this get up always funny on him. He says he wears it just to make me laugh. We three cheered for Dudley's team at every chance we got. The visit was even more fascinating, watching a different culture and their creations. Food was so good that each of three boys separately bought me a recipe book for their dishes. Boys and their stomachs! Of course, Dudley's team was the best and they won the tournament. There was still two days of our visit left and Dudley was free now. We had visited the surroundings and were deciding on what to do next when Harry made the most scary proposal.

"Aunt, Uncle, let us go to the dragon's reserve in Romania."

"WHAT reserve?" I dropped the clothes in my hand in surprise.

"Dragons! Arrr" he growled at me.

"They actually exist?" Richard was wide eyed.

"Yes" Harry nodded, amused at our expressions.

"And they even have a reserve?"

"Yes sir"

"And we can go and come out of it alive?"

"That is questionable." He answered offhandedly. Richard gulped and Dudley jumped up in delight.

"Let's go papa, please. I won the match, I don't know when we will come here again, let's go and see dragons. Please!" He started pleading. And of course, we parents cannot hold against a magical nephew and sporty son, both putting on their puppy dog eyes. Damn those eyes!

So the day before we were to leave, Harry had somehow got us the permission through Amelia Bones for the visit. I guess it is beneficial sometimes to have a high ranked official as a friend. We received an owl the night before carrying a portkey to the reserve. It took us to the base of a huge mountain, where a young witch was waiting for us. She looked dressed for combat, with her high boots, tough jacket and pants, and hair tied in a tight bun. She must have noticed my observation, for she smiled at us.

"Welcome to Romania Dragon Reserve. I guess you are ones booked as Robin and family?"

We nodded as Richard stepped forward, "Nice to meet you. I am Richard Robin, this is my wife Petunia, my son Dudley and my nephew Harry."

"Nice to meet you too. I am Feila. Now just as a formality, but you need to hand in your wands for inspection."

"Sure" Harry said and took out his wand. She performed some spell on it and handed it back to him. Then she looked at us expectantly. I realised she was waiting for our wands, "Um we don't have one. We three are muggles."

She snorted, "Yeah nice one, I've never heard that one before."

"They are telling the truth." Harry spoke, "I am Harry Potter, and I am staying with my muggle family. I got the permission for us to visit from Defence Head of Britain, Madam Amelia Bones. You may confirm it if you want, but I request secrecy about my identity."

Wide-eyed, she performed a spell at all of us and squealed in delight before controlling herself, "Oh my, I am sorry I did not believe you, but I never imagined either Harry Potter or any muggles coming to visit us. Please come in. No one will bother you about your identity, Mr. Potter. I promise. It is even possible that we would be more interested in your family."

We walked inside the reserve. In the beginning, there were many small cottages and houses everywhere, but as we walked deeper they became sparse. Soon there was wildness all around, no hint of any human residents.

"The dragons have built their nests from here onward. The first one we will visit is the gentlest of them all. Her kind is called Chinese Fireballs, we call her Selvina. There she is with her eggs."

It was a big dragon, just as shown in movies, with big jaws full of deadly teeth, spiky scales all over her body and long tail with a sharp spike at its end. She was magnificent and dangerous, that much was obvious. As soon as we walked near her, she looked at us sharply and growled. We stopped in our tracks. Feila stepped forward confidently ignoring that growl. The dragon lift her head and without any warning, let out a stream of fire at her. She confidently waved her wand and created a shield with it, against which the fire did not come ahead. The dragon then just huffed and turned her head away and crouched over her eggs.

"You call THAT gentlest?" Richard asked in a daze.

Feila smiled at us, "Of course, that was a fire of lowest intensity and just a warning. Never believe easily when someone says that they were able to fend off a dragon at its fiercest. A dragon could burn you into ashes in seconds. Even the weakest is stronger than an army of us. We have dragons here of their own will. They themselves decided that they want to remain hidden. It nothing to do with us."

A loud roar sounded in distance and Feila's eyes widened, "Oh no, looks like we are having trouble with one of our dragons. Please come with me. I will take you to one of our houses. I will have to go and assist."

She rushed us to one of the houses on the edge and went away running towards the roaring dragon. We four waited by the door outside, watching and ready to go inside should there be trouble. There was fire raised high in the sky among the trees twice and lot of roaring and screaming all the time. All of a sudden, a majestic blue dragon rose in the sky. Many coloured spells were being thrown at her, but her skin seemed to have the ability to deflect spells. She flew high in the sky, circling like a vulture and roaring in rage at something. Suddenly Harry gasped beside me, "Her egg!" At the same instant, the dragon looked down and flew swiftly towards us.

We were frozen in spot out, unable to move away. The dragon landed in front of us and gave out a loud roar. I feared this would be our end. She opened her mouth and I waited for the fire to come, but none came. Instead, the dragon let out a low growl which sounded… sad? To my surprise, Harry stepped towards her and my heart almost died of an attack when he placed his palm on her nose.

"I know. I am sorry. I will try my best. Please, don't be sad. Your kid will be majestic, I promise." He spoke to her. Just then, a lot of reserve rangers came running out of the forest. The guy I saw on the plane was there too. All of them stopped abruptly, with their mouths wide open. I guess this was another awing instance of Harry doing something unexpected.

Feila stepped forward warily, "Harry? Are you okay? Please step back carefully."

"It's okay Feila." Harry said softly, still petting the dragon, "She won't harm me or any of you. She is not angry at us. She is angry that one of her eggs has been stolen."

"WHAT!" rang out of almost everyone's mouth there. The red haired boy stepped forward, "How do you know that?"

Harry shrugged, "She told me."

"And how can you talk to the dragons?"

Harry's eyes widened in realization, "It must be the unicorns." He muttered and I understood. This was the gift they gave Harry, to be able to talk to any creature if he wishes to. Well he could already talk to snakes; this wasn't as surprising as it should have been.

"I don't understand." The guy was confused.

Harry turned to him, "Look, I would prefer not explain how. But please find her egg. It was there with her today morning. She woke up from her nap now and found it missing."

That was enough to snap them into action. I did not understand the various talks or spells cast, nor did we stay for long outside. The dragon left soon afterwards to her nest and we were given refreshments and asked to wait. It was at least another two hours when we heard a happy roar of the dragon and the red-haired boy stepped into the cottage.

"Did you find the egg?"

He nodded, "Yes, all thanks to you. Any later and he would have crossed the perimeters and would have been able to escape. Let me introduce myself. I am Charlie Weasley. Are you Harry Potter by any chance?"

Harry snickered, "Red haired guy, of course I should have guessed. Are you the Ron's brother, and prefect and quidditch captain at Hogwarts?"

Charlie smiled at me, "That would be me. Nice to know my reputation precedes me."

Dudley spoke his thoughts, "Ron? By Ron, do you mean the same Ronald you wrote to me about? The rude and idiot? Oh sorry!" He blushed when he realised that he was insulting someone's family directly in front of them.

Charlie laughed, "Don't worry, and yes the same Ronald. I guess you two do not have good history at the school?"

"Not the best, but we don't run in same circles anyway, so I don't know him that well either." Harry replied.

"That's okay. So other than the exciting part, how was your visit today?"

We fell into an easy discussion, mostly us asking questions and him answering through his experiences. Others rangers visited us from time to time during their breaks. As Feila predicted, they had lot of questions about us too. Charlie stayed with us through our remaining visit. Though I did notice that he kept giving entirely different type of looks towards Harry. The 'I am attracted' kind which I don't think Harry knows about yet. Well I guess I won't be opposed if Harry goes out with him. He is good mannered, and a handsome one too.

**_Charlie's pov_**

Harry Potter was a beautiful green eyed devil. That is the thought that had been occurring every middle of the night in my mind; always when I woke up mid-sleep with a hard on, ever since that day of his visit. I don't think I've ever been attracted to anyone. Period. I thought my love was dragons and my love for them will never be conquered. And now? Not a free moment passes without thinking about him. He is a kid, he is out of your reach, he won't be interested in you; I keep telling myself. But every night without fail, he appears in my dream, sometimes with a dragon, sometimes not.

It has been a week since I came home for a vacation. I wanted to spend time with my family, and Bill had luckily decided to take a vacation now too. So the whole family was here. Ginny was starting school this year. I was happy for her, though her mention of Harry with a dreamy smile always grated on my patience. He was a charming intelligent boy, sure, but he certainly was not a figurehead she pictured him as. And Ron was another matter altogether. I don't know whether he likes Harry or not, but I can surely tell that he is insanely jealous of him. He was constantly repeating his version of how Harry had scolded him and Hermione just for borrowing one of his cloak. I for one knew that it was a family heirloom of Potters and that it was a invisibility cloak. Harry had told me that Ron had taken it from him without asking; literally stealing it without any remorse.

Yes! Harry and I, to my excitement, had kept up communication between us, and I had kept that as a secret even from my family. This was why I did not call out on Ron during any of his rants. My heart would always skip a beat whenever I saw his familiar snowy owl, Hedwig. She was an instant success with the dragons too, they adored her for some reason. Thank goodness I did not receive any owl when I am in The Burrow. I don't want to know the reactions of my family.

_Tap tap tap_

Well at least till now. There she was at my window! Checking to see if I woke up Bill, he was my room-mate for this vacation, I rushed to the window and let her in. She settled gracefully on my bed and accepted drink and fruits from me. I then opened the letter.

_ Hey Charlie,_

_How are you? You said that you might be coming to visit home sometime around now, and I was wondering if you had. Just to let you know, I am visiting Diagon Alley tomorrow with my family. If you are here, would you like to meet up? I would be delighted to introduce you to my friends. They are coming tomorrow too. If you are not here, then that's okay too. Just tell me when you are coming and I will try to meet you if it is before school. Oh another thing, my friends are all coming to my home after shopping. Either tomorrow or whenever, see if you can come too. I want you to meet my special house guest._

_Yours lovingly_

_Harry_

I was happy. I was ecstatic to be able to meet him actually. And what luck it was that my family was going shopping tomorrow too. I would not need any excuse to go there, just to go to his house. I replied in affirmative and sent Hedwig back after cuddling her a bit.

The next day, I must have looked a bit more energetic than usual, because nothing escapes the notice of the twins. We were eating our early breakfast when they started on me.

"So tell me dear Charlie…"

"Why do you look so perky today?"

I shrugged, though I could not hold my smile from appearing.

"Ah, there it is, that coy smile …"

"that you are trying so valiantly to hide. It states that…"

"there is someone behind it…"

"sending him owls late at night." Both of them finished together. Bill, who was taking a gulp of water, started coughing as the water went down the wrong way. All of the Weasleys laughed at me as I turned beet red all of a sudden.

"No there is nothing like that. He is a good friend of mine. How do you know about the owl anyway?"

"Well brother dear…"

"just as you are fascinated with fascinating dragons…"

"and your fascinating friend…"

"whom we would fascinatingly like to meet someday, of course…"

"we are fascinated with our fascinating projects…"

"keeps us up and fascinated all night." Both of them sighed at the same time. Of all the brothers, they liked me the best, lucky for me, so they did not pester me much. But mom caught on to one snippet of the conversation, one which I hoped she would not.

" 'He' Charlie? Is your friend a male?"

"Of course. Why?"

"Nothing, but why would you have… male… friends?"

"Mom, come on, I am guy, he is a guy. Who else should I be friends with? You are thinking too much. Let's go the Alley, or we'll be caught up in the rush."

That made them all speed up and soon we were in the shopping district. It was still early, so not many people were there, but it would not remain so for long. We distributed into different groups, me with the twins.

We went to different shops as per their needs and I subtly kept a look out for Harry. Not too subtle I guess, as the twins dragged me to the ice cream shop after their shopping was over.

"So Charlie, we are being serious for once."

"Who is he? Or is it a she you are hiding as a he?"

"or is it a he and you don't want us to know that he is a he?"

"Or is it.."

"Boys, shut up! He came to visit the reserve with his family this summer and we have become friends. That's all."

"So why did you not tell us?"

"Obviously, because I did not want to make a big issue out of it. Or get teased mercilessly."

"But Charlie, you are friends with David, Sebastian, Moran, Finod, and many more…"

"Why is this one different?"

"I am sure I am just a friend for him, and moreover I know he won't like me that way."

"Oh, but you like him in that way…"

"we mean the hard way…"

"like you are hard for him way…"

"Shut up!" I blushed unceremoniously. This was embarrassing. "What do you know about ways anyway, you are just third years."

"Oh but we do know…"

"third year is a long way from first year…"

"we have grown, I mean reallyyyyy grown…"

"we see things, I mean seeee things…"

"and we are in this beautiful phase called adolescence. It is fascinating."

"Doesn't matter anyway." I retreated, "He is just a boy."

"Ooooh cradle snatcher!" both of them cooed. I hit them on their heads.

"Shut up. You won't raise any issue for him being a boy right. I mean, it won't last anyway and I don't want to be teased for something I will not get."

"No, no issues. We will be saints in this matter…"

"And who says we don't notice boys too."

I raised my eyebrows, "Oh do you?"

"You would never know." They said together.

"My friend said he might meet me here today. Tell me about one guy you notice in the meanwhile."

"Actually Charlie, we used to notice many girl things…"

"but lately we have been tuned to one boy thing."

"He's got the most beautiful green eyes…"

"the most charming smile…"

"the most caring heart…"

"the most sharp wit…"

"the most captivating body…"

"the most down to earth personality…"

"Okay okay I get it, Stop it. Who is this guy?" I asked them while taking a drink.

"Harry Potter!" They both sighed dreamily. I choked on my juice when I heard his name and started coughing.

"Something wrong with the drink?" Fred asked George and both of them took a big gulp to test it. Harry's voice sounded just right then from behind them.

"Hey Charlie! Hey Fred and George!"

Both of my twins brothers started choking too at the same time. Harry patted them both on their backs to let them catch their breaths. Once done, he settled down with us.

"Hi! Anything wrong with the drinks?"

"NO" we all shouted at the same time, making him jump in his seat. My mind was reeling. My brothers liked the same boy I liked. What a mess!

"Where is your family?" I asked to dissipate the silence.

"Oh, my aunt and uncle have gone to collect the robes. Dudley is with Hannah waiting for Susan."

"And who are your other friends?"

"We have this cool group. There is Draco and Daphne from Slytherin, Neville and me from Gryffindor, and Susan, Hannah and Cedric from Hufflepuff. They all agreed to come to visit me today. What about you? Are you coming with me? Hey Fred, George, I am inviting you too you know. Why are you looking so sad all of a sudden?"

Before I could reply, Fred and George both held one arm of Harry each and begged him, "Please, please, please, can we join your group too? For all the pranks we play, Lee Jordan is the only one who puts up with us slightly. The rest of our classmates are either jealous or scared or irritated of us."

Harry shrugged, "Sure, why not. But we are a group, no one humiliating the other or cheating on any of us. That's all we ask of each other."

"Sure Harry!" they both nodded solemnly.

Just then his cousin arrived along with two girls.

"Hey Susan, Hannah, Dudley, meet our new friends, the Weasleys. This is Charlie, Fred and George." He introduced us pointing to each one of us. Fred and George looked at each other and shook their heads.

"No, I am Fred and he is George."

Harry shrugged as he got up, "If you want to be. But I am sure I introduced right. Hey Dudley, let us go get our orders."

Both the cousins left and we joined two tables to make space for everyone. Just as we finished, Harry and Dudley arrived with two big pitchers of juice, followed by his family and other friends. He had shown me photos of all his friends already, taken on a muggle camera at the muggle platform, so I recognised all of them easily.

Once again the introductions were made and it was confirmed that everyone had permission to go visiting till evening. Everyone but us, that is. Fred and George spotted Mom going into the bookstore with Ginny, so they rushed to her. I don't know what they said, but came back with smiles on their faces.

Harry stood up once our snacks were finished, "Okay then. Shopping completed?" We all nodded.

"Permissions granted?"

Affirmed again.

"Cool! So aunt, we will go by the mini bus we booked, go to the play station, eat out at pizza palace and will be home by 3 in the afternoon. Will that be okay?"

His aunt nodded, "Okay. Be safe, keep together and no funny business anywhere. Be back on time and have fun."

She kissed both the boys on their cheeks and went with all the shopping luggage. We fell in easy chatter amongst us, age and differences being no barrier. It was like once you are a part of the group, you are family.

We went out of the leaky cauldron to a small bus parked a street away. Unlike the wizard bus, the ride on this was quite comfortable and we were at the destination in no time.

The Play Station as the place was called was a muggle play zone with all kinds of fun games, from electronic to physical. We went for the skating ring, the ball pit, the paint-gun shooting, the jumping ring and many other games, sometimes with and sometimes against each other. This was absolute fun. The twins did not even feel like pranking anyone, they were having fun as it is. After that massive workout, we went to Pizza Palace, and I was introduced to Pizza along with everyone from wizarding background. It was delicious and by the end, my stomach was in danger of bursting.

The bus dropped us home on time. Fred and George were the unfortunate ones to enter the house right after the cousins.

"Aaaaaaaahhhhhhh!" they both shouted in fright, making us all stop in our tracks. A giggle started amongst us from Hannah. Susan and Neville soon joined her and they pushed the rest inside while still giggling.

"Paladin! How are you?" Susan said to someone. That someone turned out to be a snake, a black King Cobra. He hissed in return and crawled up Susan's arms, where Hannah started petting it too. Neville shook his head, "Guys this snake is Paladin, one who lives in this house. He is one of the reasons Harry was so adamant for you all to come. He does not like keeping unnecessary secrets from his friends. He is a parselmouth."

The next few minutes were spent giving a history regarding Paladin and then the next few were spent sharing the ability to talk to that snake. After that the big group dispersed in the room. Some playing a muggle board game, some watching television, some just talking and even Cedric was sitting with me talking about taking a profession in quidditch. Harry's family had a doctor's appointment in the evening, so they bid us farewell before going. Harry left no one feeling alone. He switched from person to person, and yet never made anyone feel isolated. It was like he was a glue to the group, keeping us all together.

It was nearing our time to depart, so I went and sat by Harry who was talking to Draco and Daphne. I never expected a slytherin to be in our group, but these two were not what I expected. They were cool. Right now, a serious discussion was going on.

"So Draco, how was your summer?" Harry asked in a caring tone.

Draco shrugged, "It happens. I did as we discussed, telling him all yet nothing about you. So far, father has not been a bother, he is out of the house too much anyway. But I don't know how to deal with mother."

"Why?"

Draco did not want to say, but Daphne spoke up, "She is arranging a marriage contract between him and Pansy Parkinson."

"You don't like her?"

Draco frowned, "Like her? She is a nightmare waiting to happen."

Daphne joined in her own assessment, "She is irritating and mean to those she does not like. And the gossip; Her gossip is fantasy created out of facts, you will never survive if she sets you as her target."

Harry shrugged casually, "Let it not bother you. Marriage contracts don't happen without participants' approval."

Draco frowned again, "How do you know that?"

"Draco, Marriage is an agreement of intertwining your lives and magic. All the marriage contracts you hear of, they are made seeking the participants approval, be it by force or persuasion. You are not in trouble. And that is the reason why your mother is talking so much about her, so that you get convinced to marry her."

"Then what are family betrothal contracts, which are made even before kids are born?"

"They too need the participants acceptance. But if not given, then you would lose your family magic. Not you magic, but the traits that have been passed down through your family. Don't let that trouble you. Just don't accept the contract, even unwillingly, and you'll be fine."

Draco nodded and harry smiled naughtily, "Now that said…"

He gave no warning as he pounced on Draco, tickling him. The silent Draco remained silent no more, crying in laughter again. Everyone's attention had snapped to these tickling pair, and everybody was either laughing or smiling. Finally harry let him go.

"So guys and gals", he said and unknowingly put everyone to attention, "I just wanted to say one thing. We are a big group now. I want there to be no dislikes between any of us, because that will lead to disruptions and problems. I shared this secret for the very same reason. I want to have each one of you in my life. To do that, we need to stay united. If we do have any complain with another person, let us not just let it go or make it public. I want us to discuss things amidst us. I am saying this because I have a feeling that this year is going to be tough."

Neville stepped forward and placed a hand on his shoulders, "Don't worry Harry. Friendship is the only thing that connects us. We will stay together, don't worry."

He smiled that beautiful smile and we all went home by the floo one by one, each giving him a parting hug. Today was a day well spent.


	2. Second Year: Hssss

**_In case you have missed, I have extended the previous chapter._**

**_CHAPTER :: The Second Year, Hsssssss_**

**_Fred's pov_**

Ever since we have been integrated in our group of friends, our life has become more fun. There are letters for us all the time. There are plans to meet someone every now and then. There are friends asking our opinion for something. There is someone always present who would listen to our rants, or simply talk with us. Earlier, as much as we wanted them not to, people only looked at us as Weasley extras; as another brother, nothing more. Initially people did come to us, expecting us to act like one of our elder brothers. But they failed to grasp that we were people of our own kind, that we had different interests than others. George and I did try to be like them, tried to earn better marks, tried to do well in quidditch, tried to be the leading sort, but there was no satisfaction in that. We did things for the fun of it, not to impress someone or to feel proud of our achievements.

So the second year onwards, we dropped all the pretences to just be ourselves. We know we are good at potions, why do we need to show it just by following a book. We experiment. We know we are good at transfiguration, why show it by turning a block into feather? We turned someone's book into one. And so forth. We learn, we experiment and we implement. This did not sit well with the population. They laugh at our jokes, but keep away from us. It was indeed frustrating. I don't know what we would have done this year for lack of anything to do.

And now that we have someone who laughs with us, who plays with us, and who talks with us. Maybe this was the reason why our pranks reduced, because we had better things to do that bother someone who don't bother with us. All thanks to Harry. Sigh! I guess I need to ask Charlie how he controls himself around him. He is very tempting to not want to pinch his ass or hug him tight.

And I am pretty sure that George feels the same way. We have been together since birth, mere interest in another wasn't going to separate us. I guess I don't have any objections in sharing Harry with him, or even sharing harry at all, as long as I get my turn. Uh! My thoughts are turning crazy now. No what I should concentrate on was Ginny. Just as I was thinking about her, George turned to me on his bed.

"You are thinking about Ginny too, right?"

"Yes, ever since we returned from Diagon Alley, she has been acting weird."

"It is not like our sister to be a silent person..."

"or an introvert..."

"or a person who shies away."

"It feels like she is..."

"hiding something."

"We need to keep a watch on her."

"Ronald is too busy with himself to do that."

"She is not telling us something..."

"we need to find out what."

"Glad to know you are on the same page, George."

"Like always Fred."

After a moment, I could not help but ask, "George, you were thinking about Harry before Ginny, right?"

"Hmm. And his delicious ass."

We stayed silent for a moment before both started laughing like crazy.

**_Daphne's pov_**

Back to school today, I was just about to go to bed when Astoria, my sister, barged through my door and clung to my bed post, her breath coming in huffs. She spoke in haste, "I saw him sister. I finally saw him."

"Saw whom Astoria?"

"Harry Potter!"

"He studies in this school sister, of course you would see him."

"No, not like that. I was coming back from the library just now when I saw him walking quickly, as if someone was calling him or something."

"That is weird, Harry usually doesn't act like that."

"I don't know that, but yeah… he was following something, I am sure. He had his head close to the wall as if listening to something."

"We can ask him tomorrow. You should go to bed now. Tomorrow is your first day."

"Okay. Goodnight sister."

"Goodnight Astoria. Sleep well."

The last thoughts before I went to sleep were about the actions of Harry. Why was he doing so?

The classes started and they were better, except the Lockhart's class. He was an utter idiot and imbecile and… uhh, I can't even find words to describe him. I had taken Runes and Arithmancy as my specializations. We as a group had made a collective effort when deciding what subjects to take. Cedric was especially helpful in this case, and so was Charlie during the holidays. Though we cannot meet often, he was one guy who kept up with everyone through letters.

So we were all busy the whole week. On the weekend the twins called for a meeting under our tree. I do hope we can find a better place for the colder days. Meeting Draco in the main hall, we walked to our tree.

A girl was already sitting there. She looked a bit strange in her radish shaped earrings and weird tube like chain as her necklace.

"Excuse me, are you going to sit here now? Our friends have decided to meet here. We could relocate if you wish to sit here." I asked her. She looked up at me and smiled at me.

"But why would you or I leave? I am here to join your group."

"Excuse me?"

"Your group of friends, I am here to join myself."

"Aren't you a first year?"

"Luna Lovegood, Ravenclaw, nice to meet you."

"How do you already know about our group?" We sat by her. I did notice that Draco was unusually silent.

"You are very popular. But I should warn you that your integrity will be tested soon. I bet you will come out with flying colours."

"I do not understand."

"You will soon."

The others joined us soon. As soon as Harry sat, Luna immediately turned to him, "Harry Potter, I am Luna Lovegood. I will be your sister if you will take me. I do not see you in the other way."

Harry was puzzled as he took her hand. Cedric and the twins coughed together and then looked at each other with wide eyes. I did not understand that communication either. Anyway Harry's words were more interesting. They were sort of the invitation cards from Harry, though he still denies it.

"Of course Luna. You are welcome here. But what happened to you this week? Why do you look so tired?"

I looked into the smiling faces of the people in our group. Looks like we were all thinking the same thing.

Luna smiled, "Hogwarts seems to like my things better than me. They keep turning up in odd places and well used."

But we all grew serious. This was clearly abuse. Cedric, who had been elected as a prefect this year, even more so.

"Why did you tell no one about this?" He asked her.

"I do not know which stones of Hogwarts I can trust. What if the ones under my bed take my books because I told the fireplace? I do need to study, don't I?

It didn't take much for me to understand her references. What if some roommate stole books for telling a prefect? She was a kind all of her own. She might look crazy in the beginning, but she had much more underneath.

We fell into an easy conversation, each telling their experiences for the week. I brought out Astoria's concern.

"Hey Harry!"

"Hmm"

"What were you doing the first night, walking close to the walls as if following something?"

"Oh that? I heard some voice. Only, it was like it was coming from the walls. I tried to follow it, but it disappeared soon. The more disturbing fact was what it was saying. It went like, 'No, not again. I cannot be freed just to be chained. I was not raised for this. How do I get out of this?' "

"Oh!" I had no reply. What was happening at our school again?

As our discussion continued, we all complained about the poor teaching of Lockhart. Cedric was worried.

"This is my OWL year. I cannot have him teaching me. I will never get a proper grade like this."

"That is an issue." Harry said, "Why don't you and your year mates form a group and self study. You could go to some professor for any doubts or explanations. You'll have no defence teacher to depend on this year too. I don't understand what Dumbledore is doing. Doesn't he care about students anymore?"

Draco replied in a monotone, "He does not want Ministry placing anyone in the castle."

"But, if the students get some education better that way, then so be it. What secrets does he have to risk education?"

Our discussion continued this way for some time before we dispersed. I turned to Draco to go with him, but I saw Harry hold his hand and pull him back toward the tree. I smiled. Looks like I am not the only one concerned for Draco. How sweet! I sometimes wish I had some problems, just so that he would care for me like that.

**_Draco's pov_**

As I got up to leave with others, someone put a hand on my shoulders. I knew in my heart that it was Harry, but I shivered anyway. This made him turn me around, a concerned look on his face. He ghosted his arm down my arm to my own hand and held it tight. Then he dragged me back to the tree, in a spot which I knew hid us from view. We sat down again, him just beside me. We sat in silence for a few minutes, before he sighed and put his chin on my shoulders. I could feel his warm breath and smell his cool fragrance. It made me shiver for some unknown reason.

"Will you tell me Draco?"

"There is nothing to tell." I did not look into his eyes.

"Well, I won't push. But I do want to know what made my pretty friend shiver at a simple touch and why he is unusually silent. Can we sit here for a while?"

I nodded, that was better than anything else I can think of doing right now. But I could not hold on to that thought for long. For some reason him sitting beside me just to care for me stuck a cord in my heart, one that I never felt before. I felt… loved.

"Harry?" I asked him, taking his hand in my own and playing with his fingers.

"Hmm?"

"I don't want to go back to my house again."

He raised his head from my shoulders and looked into my eyes. I don't know what he saw but he nodded, "Okay, you won't." He declared.

I felt stupid for being encouraged with that impossible promise.

"How? How can you promise me when you know it is not possible? Do you even know what my father has done, what he can do? He is the worst saddist and cruel manipulator. He will beat me if I step out of bounds. He will crutiate anyone just for stepping in his way. He'll kill you just for promising me that."

His face had grown very serious during my rant, "Did he beat you, Draco? Tell me what did he do, please. I cannot… cannot see you like this."

"It was nothing pretty. Leave it be."

He took my chin in his hands and turned my face towards his, caressing my cheek until I raised my teary eyes to meet his.

"What did he do, Draco?"

"He made me watch… that… repeatedly." I could not say it.

"Watch what?"

"He and mother did… it in front of me. It was barbaric." I shivered at the memories.

"Sex?"

I nodded, "It was more of torturing each other than anything else. One time, he even cast Imperio on her before raping her in front of me. It was… like he was showing me how to do it. It was so…. Uhhh" I rubbed my eyes to dispel the images. Harry took both my hands in his.

"How could they do it? That is not… parenting. And how did they make you see all that? What are you not telling me Draco?"

"They did something… I don't know what… but something, related to Hogwarts. They keep saying the whole summer that their dark lord will return soon and that I had to be prepared enough to earn a place among his followers. And they started it all. They taught me loopholes in politics, they taught me how to manipulated people, they taught me how to bow before their dark lord. They tried teaching me how to cast the unforgivable. They showed it to me, on my house-elf Dobby. But I could not do it, I like him. He remains my constant company and support in that house since my childhood. Father got angry Harry, he cast it on me. It was painful, like I could not find a part of my body not in pain. And then they had sex. Then it became a routine. I mean, seriously, who gets excited by torturing one's own son?"

Tears were flowing through my eyes now, but I did not care. Who else would I tell this to? Who else would believe me? Who else give me something other than disgust or pity? Harry did. He pulled me into his arms and hugged me, rubbing my hair and back while I broke down. It took a while for my crying to subside, only then I pulled away from his safety.

"So tell me Harry, what should I do now?" I expected no answer. He had one.

"Will you let me tell this to a few people? I promise, they are trustworthy and will direct us to the solution."

"Who? And What?"

"I am the heir to the ancient line of Potter. Since I reached 11 years of age and I have no guardians in that title, I am eligible for emancipation. I did not bother about it till now, I was happy with the things as they were. But I will take it up now and then take you under my protection. Family magic is a powerful thing. They could track you as you are the heir to Malfoys, but being under my protection will give you safety. You will…"

"I will renounce it if it helps. I do not want to be a Malfoy anymore."

"Draco, Malfoy line is powerful in its own right. You need not disown it due to some savory characters that hold it too. I have another solution, but I will have to talk to someone. That's why I have to tell all this. Please!"

Hope blossomed in my heart, "If you trust someone Harry, do as you wish. I trust you."

He kissed me on my cheek, making me blush slightly, "Thank you. Now, you will then be able to live with me or anyone I approve of. I will protect you Draco, and you will never step under their hold again. I promise."

That was a strong statement. I did not know that it could provoke such a strong reaction from me. It was unconscious move. I leaned forward taking his cheek in my hands and kissed him, full on the mouth. It was just a small one, but it got a blush from both of us. "Thank you" I said and immediately rushed to the castle, leaving him looking stunned with his fingers on his lips.


	3. Emancipation

_**CHAPTER: Emancipation**_

**Guys... Please review. Don't leave me wondering...**

_**Severus's pov**_

Harry Potter was an intriguing character. After he had delivered Lily's letter in the first year, he had taken to meeting me regularly in my off hours, just to chat and build a relationship. I would never say it aloud, but I liked him. He was older than his age and wiser than his maturity. He was also a fun loving person and an intelligent conservationist. Not even in front of my godson, Draco, could I let myself relax like I could with him. Maybe the reason was because he knew me completely, all my troubles, sacrifices, errors and gains.

So I was slightly surprised when he entered the office along with Draco.

"Severus, I need you to perform legilimency on me."

"I know you have a natural shield Potter."

"I will lower it down. You need to see one memory."

I nodded my head and said the incantation. It showed me a memory of the boys speaking under a tree in Hogwarts. It left me shocked.

"Oh no! They are monsters."

"I know. I need you to come with us. We need to go to the Ministry and Gringotts."

Though both Draco and I knew what he planned to do, this surprised us anyway.

"Would that be wise, Harry? Whom do you trust in these places?"

"You'll see. But we need to do it soon before Dumbledore even gets a hint of it."

"What did he do now?" I sighed. This was regular topic between us. He has a lot of complains against the headmaster.

"Dumbledore has been making enquiries on my expenditures and he once tried to find out the location of our family house. I do not trust that he would take the news of my emancipation well. That's why I need one each from Hogwarts, Ministry and Gringotts on my side. So, will you accompany us?"

I agreed and we made plans to leave on the coming weekend. Harry promised that he would arrange the approval for the meetings. On Saturday, we left through my floo for the Leaky Cauldron, but only after I had disillusioned them both. Headmaster had approved the floo for my office during the battle and did not take the privilege away. He would of course be notified that it has been used, but we hoped that we would accomplish our task before returning today.

The first stop from there was the Ministry, where Harry led us directly to Amelia Bones. She was a strict and fair officer, this much I knew. We were given entry to her office as soon as we arrived.

"Yes Harry? Why did you request this meeting? If it is about Sirius Black, I have nearly completed arranging the trial for him. There are a few idiots and arrogant people I still have to go through."

"I have faith in you, Madam. No, this is about another matter. If you can bring us a pensive, I want to show you a memory."

She did as asked, no questions asked. I wondered how good a contact Harry has with Miss Bones. And what was this about Black?

"I have the memory ready, Please…" But Draco stopped him.

"Harry, I better give my own memories. This way she may find out something important. This is not just about me now."

"But Draco…" Harry started, but held his words when he looked into Draco's eyes, and finally nodded with a smile. Taking a deep breath, Draco focused on something and nodded to her. Miss Bones drew a stream of memories and placed them in the pensive. As Harry, Miss Bones and I stepped forward to watch the memories, Draco gripped Harry's hand and shook his head. Harry nodded and stayed with him as we looked into the memories. We were both disgusted with what it showed us. It would not suffice even if I said that Draco gave Harry a pretty abridged version of what happened. Once out of them, Amelia Bones had tears in her eyes as she ordered a whiskey and told us to sit down.

"How do you plan to do the emancipation? I could tell you all the rules and…"

But Harry shook his head, "We need to go to Gringotts first. Will you please accompany us? Both of you could decide on the best path for me to take. Please Madam, come with me as an adult who cares about children, not as the Head of Defense."

That seemed to do the job as she immediately agreed and took a few minutes to rearrange her appointments. Then we headed for Gringotts. When we reached there, harry requested me to drop the spells on us. There were two goblins guarding the doors as usual. What was surprising was Harry greeting them.

"May your life always be happy and rich!" The goblins bowed back and nodded their heads in approval of something. Harry turned to us, "This is the formal greeting of goblins to those you are not much familiar with. Please at least when you are with me, I request you to show them the respect that should be shown."

We accepted and did the same greeting with the goblin guards. It was silly, but I felt ashamed of unconsciously looking down on someone. A goblin was already waiting for us as soon as we entered the doors. He bowed to us and we greeted him the same way without a prompt, earning us a smile from Harry. He smiled at the goblin too.

"Well met, Griphook, the head of your clan and beloved of my heart. May your heart remain bold, your axe strong, and your might high."

The goblin bowed back, "Well met indeed, part of my heart. May you always lead happiness wherever you go! Your purpose for the visit?"

"I have a meeting arranged with King Ragnok in another five minutes and I would request your participation in it."

The goblin, Griphook, nodded and led us through the main doors inside the hall. After various twists and turns, we reached a grand door. Harry asked for a moment and turned to us.

"We are meeting the king of goblins. Show utmost respect and no rudeness, for it will not be tolerated. We are here to ask for guidance, not to give orders. Please remember that and let go of all your past experiences and impressions."

He then told us about the proper greetings and then Griphook knocked on the door. The doors opened to a stone hall decorated with weapons, books and hangings. It was impressive. There were two rows of goblins seated on either side near the walls, each working on some parchments. They did not spare even a glance to us. At the end of the room was seated the King Ragnok; he too had a table in front of him filled with books and parchments. I realized no one sits idle in Gringotts, whatever their position might be. As we neared him, I felt like passing through a film of barrier. Once through, we could hear no sound from the other side. We greeted him as instructed, paying respect to him and to his chain in particular. After the formalities, he asked us for our purpose. Harry again requested him to go through a memory, the King ordered an ancient pensive and then, Griphook and the King delved into the memory. Once finished they were enraged. They cursed him valiantly in their own language for a long time before they calmed down.

"So what do you require from us, Mister Potter."

"I want to be emancipated Your Grace, and need guidance and warnings associated with it. Miss Bones here is a fair officer amongst the Wizards and knows all the rules and procedures. I am but a child, and would agree with what both of you and Griphook would decide for me."

"Why did you come to me, Mister Potter, when this could have been done by anyone in your world?" The king asked Harry.

"Trust and Wisdom, your Grace, and the very fact that I know the three of you well enough to know that you would not stand seeing a child being abused, forced or hurt. Also, I would like to keep this under wraps for now, as if it really refers Voldemort's return, then we need to be prepared. And by we, I mean all the races he would affect or destabilize when he comes to power. I started with you, and then if our doubts turn true, then I need to inform the others, like centaurs and dwarfs."

"Well said, please give us a while to discuss your options."

Draco, Harry and I went back outside the barrier where some chairs have been placed for us. As soon as we were seated, I turned to Harry.

"All the planning is well, Harry, but may I know why I am being involved in this?"

"Two things Severus. First, would you be amenable to be Draco's guardian, though he would be under my protection?"

I turned to Draco, "Would you want to live with me, Draco, as your rightful place as my godson?"

"Yes." He nodded.

Harry continued, "Second, I do not want you to be the spy for Voldemort again."

"That is a very strong demand, Harry."

"Please, listen to me. What use had it been with you being the spy? Dumbledore would not take the pro-action to defeat Him, nor the news you would bring help us in any way as Voldemort knows you will be under Dumbledore's eyes. He would not tell you important things. What little use your spying had been, we can achieve that through other means. Also, your skills as the Potion master will be used against your will by him, as you will have to make them to appease him. No, you are better fighting out against him, than pretending as a spy and unable to take any action. Please, this is one request I make of you. I lost my parents, I will not lose anyone I consider important again."

"I will… think over the matter. There is Dumbledore to consider too, and his Order of Phoenix."

"Yeah yeah, that twinkle twinkle guy does nothing but preach. We will cross that barrier when it comes to that. We still have time, however much it would be, so please think over and be prepared to make a decision for whenever it needs to be taken."

I nodded. We were called by the King then.

"Okay, here is what we think you should do. You will be emancipated under oaths by the Ministry. It would be kept secret. As a proxy, you would appoint someone else to sit at the Wizard meetings till you are of age. Next, regarding the accounts, we would seal off access for Dumbledore as rule states, but tell him that your privacy had been ordered by your parents when you reach this age. Mister Malfoy, you are to remain quiet about your change of guardians until the summer vacation, so you would want to prefer staying at Hogwarts or visiting your friends for the break in between. And lastly, Mister Snape, we would want you to change your residence to the Prince Manor, as it had better protections against any raid."

We nodded at the decisions and thanked him for his time. With one trip to the ministry, where necessary documents were signed by Harry and Draco, the required changes had been made. Draco would be Harry's ward and my house mate from now on. I was… pleased.

We returned to Hogwarts by afternoon and the boys bid me farewell. Just as they were leaving, Fawkes flashed in with a greeting and handed me a letter from the Headmaster, inviting me to his office. I sighed. Time to put the acting hat on! I walked out and watched as the boys were just turning round the corner.

"… want to make a bet on it?"

"I don't make losing bets Potter. Even I noticed the impressed and captivated eyes of the Defense head. She will make a move before we come back for next year school."

"Awww… Even I cannot dispute that. Okay, let's see, when do you think Severus will realize she is interested in him…"

I stared at their retreat with wide eyes. Miss Bones? Interested in me? One moment these boys are talking about emancipation and the next, about matchmaking? Kids these days!

I shook myself awake and went to the Headmaster's office. Why the hell does he uses such ridiculous passwords as 'ice mice'. Sometimes, he acts even more immature than teenagers.

"Ah Severus! Please take a seat. Lemon Drops?"

"No thank you."

"Well, one day I hope you will learn to appreciate chocolates and candies. Anyway, I noticed that you used your floo system after a long time. May I know why? I had left it for your use but you never used it till today."

"I was invited by Lucius Malfoy."

"What did your dear friend want?"

"He did not say anything specific, but hinted that he did something at Hogwarts. He says 'time to rule under the right power will come again soon'. Make what you want of it."

"Ah… would you share your memory of the meeting, my boy."

I stood up, knowing that our discussion had ended, "You know that I would not. My mind is the only thing that remains mine, and I will not share it with anybody."

_**Susan's pov**_

All of us were quite pleased yet surprised with sudden shift in Draco's behavior. He went from dead silent to… well, silent. When we ask him about it, he would just smile and say, "I'll tell you before the school ends." Well, at least he is normal again, so I felt confident asking him to help me in potions. Phew! He agreed.

Hannah and I found him with Harry, seated at a corner desk right by the window. Harry was reading a letter with a smile on his face. The sunlight lit his face, highlighting his emerald green eyes, his sharp nose and his kissable lips. Ugh! Ever since I entered my menstrual cycle this summer, thoughts about him have haunted my mind day and night. Add to that, my aunt had to give me the talk about birds and bees. I am still a kid, but does that doesn't stop me from imagining how it would feel to be held in his arms.

"Psss… Susan. You are staring." Hannah hissed at me and I broke out of my stupor. When we reached there, Harry looked up with a smile.

"Hey Susan! Hi Hannah! Tutoring from the next Potions master?"

"Well" I gulped, trying to act normal, "now that he is not the scary potions professor anymore. Whatever you did to bring him to normal, thank you."

"You would never guess how much difficult it was to sacrifice my morning exercise just to bring him from SILENT to silent. Anyway, enjoy yourself. Hannah, you wanted to talk to me?"

"Yes, umm… can we go outside?"

"Sure. Bye guys."

I watched him as he walked away in graceful steps and wished that he would turn and look at me once. It did not happen.

"I am going to compete with you for him, just so you know." Draco's voice brought me back to reality.

"What do you mean?"

"Harry. I like him, very much and I can see that you like him too. We are going to be competing soon."

"He might not be into guys, you know."

"I don't and I am hoping he is. If not, I will help you then. It will be easier watching him with a friend than with anyone else. At least I won't be pushed away then."

"Okay I will do the same. But what if he likes another guy in our friends?"

"Why are you asking so much?"

"I realized recently that I like him. I am trying to work out my feelings. On one hand, I wish he would be with just me. But then I would feel bad from taking him away from you all. He had affected the life of the whole group. So my next thought would be how would I cope when he likes another friend, say Daphne? I like Daphne, trust me, she is my best friend. But Harry is something else."

Draco slumped in his seat, "And there comes my trouble. You all have been like a family for me the past year. After this summer vacation, I don't want to lose any of you. But I want Harry too. Maybe I would beg him to keep me as a side love if he likes another friend, just so that I won't lose both. Ugh! My head is all messed up. I guess that's why they say you should not fall in love so young. Maybe I will get a clarity when I grow up a bit… But then…"

I too sighed, "I know… what if I am too late by then."

"Oh this is so messed up!" He groaned.

_**Neville's pov**_

Once again we were in that fraud's class. Cedric is right, DADA would be hell for fifth and seventh years with their main exams this year. Here was Lockhart, telling us a tale of how he defended a town from the dangerous vampires. Does he really think we would believe that he made a vampire fall in love with him by smiling kindly at him? What nonsense! If it was Harry there, I can bet they would fall in love with him; but not this fraud.

"Okay students, enough story telling. You can read my published works to learn about my victories. Let us do some practical now."

I tuned in, wishing that he would teach me something worthwhile for once. Besides me, Harry snorted and continued reading his own book. Now why didn't I think of that?

"I have collected these with very much difficulty, nasty little beings they are. And dangerous too, I might add. One gave me a bite right on my arm, but being the talented healer that I am I healed myself in an instant."

A few girls sitting in the front sighed in admiration and I rolled my eyes. Stupid fans for Stupid celebrities.

"So without any delay, let me present you the bane of existence for many, the deadlyyyyy…." He flapped off the cover over a cage placed in the hall, "pixies." He announced.

The class was silent for a moment, only the sound of screeching pixies could be heard. He brought… pixies? Harry gave a light chuckle beside me, which slowly turned into outright laughter. Everyone joined him in it.

"Oh so you think these are easy to deal with, Mister Potter? Come here and prove yourself like I had done in my noteworthy past. Let's see how a mere student like you would deal with the dangerous pixies."

Harry, still laughing, walked to the cage. Lockhart opened the bolt of the cage and immediately walked back to the far end of the room. Before the pixies would get out, Harry bent to the level of the cage and looked at the pixies.

"Do you want to be set free back to the forest?"

The pixies all nodded simultaneously.

"Did you hurt you in any manner?"

The pixies all nodded simultaneously.

"Did he hurt or find your nest? Do you want to relocate?"

The pixies shook their heads simultaneously.

"Are you hungry? Would you want to take some food with you?"

The pixies all nodded simultaneously.

"Well, let me not stop you. That person who says he caught you, he always has a stock of treats in his room always. You can take as many as you want, okay? Come back again if you are unable to carry all of them at once. Here, eat mine for now, you need your energy."

He took out a big bar of chocolate from his never ending supply. I wonder where and how he keeps them all the time. The pixies accepted it and each broke of a piece from it. It was comical, watching all the pixies eat their chocolates sitting in various places in and around their cages. Then simultaneously, like a swarm of bees, all of them flew towards Lockhart's room and flew in with different treats amongst them. Then they simultaneously blew their tongues at him and immediately flew out of the window. This made the class topple over in another bout of laughter.

Harry was laughing too. He spoke to the class and surprisingly, everyone quietened down to listen to him, "And this is how you get rid of these dangerous beasts. Pixies savage for food. The best way to get rid of them in houses is either to place a stack of food outside the house and ward it against them after they leave, or make a simple deal with them about food supply. They are not harmful; they would keep your kitchen clean of leftovers. Thank you."

Everybody laughed as Lockhart dismissed the class and went running into his office to check on his supply of treats.

I admired Harry's ability to connect with beings if they him too. The fact that this gift came from a unicorn was amazing. But it would only happen if both parties would want to communicate. Otherwise he was just a normal human, who was befriended, loved, envied and even hated.

"Oi Potter! Wait for me." Ron cried out behind us. Harry stopped to let him catch up. Hermione was walking near us, but not with us. Eavesdropping maybe? Oh well, let it be.

"Thanks mate. Why do you always leave class without waiting for me?"

Harry shrugged, "Well, I have Neville for company. And you were busy chatting with Dean, so I let you be."

"I would leave him for you any time of the day, you know." Ron huffed. Harry looked at him in surprise, "And why would you do that?"

"Why wouldn't I? Let's say you are talking to Hermione. Wouldn't you leave her if Neville called you? Though I still don't understand why you are friends with a loser like him."

Harry had stopped in his tracks, making us all stop with him. Except Ron of course. Only when he noticed that no one had answered him did he turn around to see we've stopped. He came back to us, only to be scolded by Harry.

"Ronald Weasley. I wouldn't leave anyone just for another person. My friends have sense enough not to pull me away from another person unless it is an urgent issue. Even then, there will be formal apologies from both of us if we really have to leave." He took a step closer to him, coming face to face with him, "And Ron, I am friends with Neville because he is a friend worth having. I would not leave him for you, or for anyone. He has my trust, my faith and my friendship, and I am proud to be his friend. Never again insult any one of my friends in front of me. You will regret it."

Saying that, he held my hand and we walked away from him. Affection for him filled my heart. No one else had stood up for me, stood with me, my entire life. No one has till now said that they are proud of me, proud with me. For one fleeting moment, I tried to imagine what my life would be if Harry walked out of it now. My heart gave a sharp pang just for thinking that. No, without Harry, I don't think I will be able to survive.


	4. Hissssssssssssss

**_CHAPTER:: Hissssss_**

**_Cedric's pov_**

I am proud to be the quidditch captain for my house this year. I know that in fifth year, the studies will be tough and would require more work, but quidditch is my passion that I cannot just let go. And it helps that it relaxes me from the stress of studies. What makes me even happier is the fact that I will be captaining against four of my friends. Draco was the new seeker for Slytherins, Fred and George remain the beaters and Harry is the new seeker for Gryffindor. And this year's first match was us against Gryffindor.

We got smashed in the game. Their chasers were coordinated, but so were ours. Their beaters were very efficient, but ours were okay in their job. Our keeper was definitely better than theirs. But I totally have to revaluate my seeking skills when compared to harry. He is a devil in the sky. The twists and turns and rolling over, I would die of heart attack just watching him go. That's not to say I did not try. We were neck to neck in chase after the snitch, but in the last moment it dived to the ground. Then just before it touched the grass, it skidded sideways and flew up again. Even if someone could dare to follow it so close to the ground, I don't think anyone would be able to skid like that and avoid colliding with the ground. Harry did! I had pulled up in the last second when I was certain that snitch would touch the ground and bounce up. I thought I would catch it then. How wrong I was. I could not help but shout when I saw Harry still chasing it. I even extended my hand to hold him when I was sure he would hit the ground. I don't know how he twisted his body so that the broom would lie flat in that instant, but he moved with the broom lying flat on it himself and as soon as the snitch flew up, he let go of the broom and caught it with both hands. Needless to say, we lost.

But I was not sad. Unhappy that we lost the game? yes; but not sad. My team played well. We were higher on the scoreboard before the snitch was caught. But the challenging game more than made up for it. I will have to improve my skills if I wish to go for international quidditch. Maybe Harry would teach me? I can hope so.

I was going towards my house dorms when I heard someone speak, "What is Harry Potter doing here?" It was Padma Patil, a second year Ravenclaw. I think she had just come out of the library. I went to her, "Excuse me Miss Patil. What did you just say?"

"There! See, there is Harry Potter and he is walking along the walls for some unknown reason."

I remembered what Daphne told me about him doing the same on the first day. This was suspicious. I followed him and found that the girl was following me too. At my questioning look, she shook her head,

"Please don't think wrong of me. I just want to help. I am not fangirl'ing after him. I just admire him for his intelligence and caring nature."

I nodded and we both followed him. "Harry! Harry! Wait."

He heard us and put a finger to his mouth, telling us to keep silent. Then, he started hissing. I was surprised that he was speaking parseltoungue in the air, and I was sure that Daphne was surprised he was speaking that language at all. After a while he shook his head and banged the wall with his fist. We immediately rushed to him.

"What happened, harry? Who were you speaking to?"

"That's what I am trying to find out. I keep hearing this agitated voice, who keeps telling herself that she does want to follow him. I finally managed to talk to her today, she snapped that no one can help her and then the voice faded. I don't understand."

"But you were speaking parseltongue. Doesn't that mean a snake?"

Harry looked at Padma in surprise when she said that, "Was I? Are you sure?"

"Yes, though I did not know that anyone in the school could speak it. I am sorry, maybe I shouldn't have assumed..."

But Harry cut her off with a kiss on her cheek, making her blush, "You are a genius. Thank you so much." Then he started pacing, "Now, if she is a snake, how can she move through the walls?"

"The plumbing." Padma blurted out before she clamped her mouth with her palm.

"Reasonable guess…. So someone is controlling her, and that can only be done by a powerful parseltongue speaker. She had been controlled before too, before someone bound her somewhere. Now she has been freed again. That means the person who controlled her is back. And she does say she does not want to harm students, so that means such is the order the speaker is giving her. Cedric! We need to research on snakes. And before that, we have to search for any snake attack in the past. Will you be able to help me against your entire busy schedule?"

I felt happy to get to spend some time with him, "Sure Harry, I will tell you if I am busy anytime you need me."

"Can I help too?" the timid voice of Padma Patil asked beside me. Harry looked at her and nodded, "If you find some free time. And please, keep this to yourself for now. Something sinister is going to happening around us."

We three nodded to each other and went to our dorms. The next day onwards, we busied ourselves in the library if we had any free time. Harry insisted that we do the research only when free, but that genius always had time to come with us if we were free. I don't know how he does that.

It was Halloween today, and the school was happy celebrating the occasion. We were given the day off and I was hanging out with my friends from my house; you know, the ones who did not have time for me before. I guess being friends with Potter had increased my reputation and now people who want to reach him have found a means through me. I think they think that being good friends with me will improve my opinion of them and I will call on them to be included in our group too. What they don't understand is that trust and honesty were essential in our group, and I was happy with who were in it. Harry is the initiator anyway; if you hear him ask the initiation question, know that he or she could be in our group. Haha!

Anyway, so I was walking towards the main hall to look at the decorations when Padma came running towards me.

"Cedric, you need to come with me now. Please!" She panted.

I looked at my friends, "I am sorry guys, this seems important. Why don't you go ahead and I will join you if I can?"

"From when on are you moving with a Ravenclaw?" one of them asked sneeringly.

"Since you had left me out of your Hogsmede trip again." I retorted back in a serious voice. He held his hands up and they all went on. Padma immediately held my hand and started running towards a first floor corridor.

"What happened?"

"Harry! He is going to confront the snake now. It is a basilisk for hell's sake. What does he think he can do? Please, he is not listening to me."

We had researched and found that a girl was killed without any signs of physical attack fifty years ago. She was the Moaning Myrtyl that now haunts a bathroom in the first floor girls' washroom. No one uses it now. From her information, we later deduced that the snake is a basilisk, a highly dangerous snake which can kill with a glance at you. Basilisks are evil in their formation; they are normal snakes when in the eggs. But one has to kill someone and perform a ritual, transferring all the power of the victim and what they get from the killing to the egg. Then a basilisk is born. It is forced to follow its creator, and then whoever defeats him. Of course, a person can release the snake from its service, but then it is vulnerable to be mastered by a person more powerful than its previous owner, overriding his release. That must have happened fifty years ago.

I hurried beside her to the said corridor. Harry was speaking to a wall. Looks like he finally managed to contact her. He was hissing continuously.

**_ Salandra's (the basilisk) pov_**

_((The conversation is in parseltongue, but this is how it goes in the snake's point of view. No one else can understand the conversations))_

My first master, the evil one, was killed by Salazar Slytherin in a battle. I was happy to be away from following a madman's orders. I knew that Slytherin would kill me too, but he surprised me with his ability to speak to snakes. I asked him to kill me too, for I knew that I was an abomination. But instead, he asked me if I wanted to protect a school full of children. So I was led here to the castle of Hogwarts. I know that I was destined to be lonely, for neither could I reproduce, nor the other snakes would come near me. Well who would anyway, I kill anyone I look at. I was binned and transported here and Slytherin was king enough to build a big chamber for me, to reside comfortably for the hundreds of years that my life would be. I live not on food, but on the magic that I snatch from my kills. Here I was tuned to the castle magic. So my need for hunt was sated and I was able to go into deep slumbers, only to wake up when my master called. I was satisfied this way.

He did come many times, and suddenly one time when I woke up to his call, I was 50 feet long. It was then I realized that my master Salazar was dead and that one new one has come. I was happy that I would get to know another human, but it turned into a big disappointment in the first meet itself. It was a child who was determined to rule the world. His orders were sick. He used to send me to bring him various ingredients for his rituals, and some of them involved me killing other creatures. He even made me kill one student from this school itself. I was disgusted. This was not what Salazar placed me here for.

Now after another fifty years, it seems the master has come back. As usual I am not allowed to see my master, for it would kill them instantly. He said to roam the castle for now, to familiarize with the exits and structure, for the time to rule has come and he would cleanse the wizarding world. I hate my master!

But then, another parseltongue speaker heard me as I was crawling through the walls. He called me out many times, and I responded once to know what his intentions were. He told me he wants to help me. As much as I wanted to take any help in my situation, I was bound by the order of my master to not seek anybody's help. It is very frustrating doing anything against my wishes.

But today, as I was going back to my chamber, the other speaker called me out again.

"Please wait, I know you are a basilisk and know the rules that you have to follow. If your master had not prohibited you from just listening to me, please hear me out."

I paused; this thought had worth, "Speak what you want to say."

"Please tell me what your exact orders are and I will help you aside them. I have found a way to lesson your anguish, please."

I though over it, just listening won't be disobeying, "I am listening. My orders are to roam around the castle and familiarize myself with the exits and structure, and to not seek help from anywhere. I was also told to stare down anyone who tried to order me against him."

"Okay, I want you to follow your orders. Trust me; it will only be to your comfort. Give me five minutes."

I hissed at him in annoyance, but waited to see what solution he had found.

I heard him talking to some other humans and one of them shouting. I could not understand them. The voices stopped and then I heard the human speak to me.

"Please listen carefully. What I am going to do will lessen the impact of your glance. Instead of killing, it will only petrify them. I can give you the control of your glance's effect completely, but for that you need to be in my control. So as soon as you have followed your orders, I would suggest you to immediately go back to your chamber and not alert your master if possible. I will find a way to defeat him and free you again, I promise. Now this is my order; Come out of hiding and stop following your master's orders."

The initial soothing I felt from his words disappeared as soon as he said that order. I felt the compulsion to glance at him now and kill him, as were my orders. Beyond my restrain, I was forced to come out of the chamber into the washroom through the hidden passage, but I kept my eyes closed. I could sense one person in the room and two others outside it. Resigned to another death on my conscience I opened my eyes to look at the foolish speaker. I stared around to see myself back in the washroom where I killed the previous student girl. Before I could glance at the stupid human, a huge force of power slammed into me, blinding me for a second. I looked to where the power came from only to meet a pair of bright green eyes. In the next instant, those eyes froze and the kid fell down on the floor. I was dismayed. Was this the speaker I was speaking to? He was powerful and would have made a good master. I slithered close to him and looked at him. Surprisingly, I could hear a faint sound of something beating. My eyes widened in surprise when I realized that the boy was still alive, only petrified. Joy filled my heart. So what he told did happen. My gaze now could not kill others, only petrify them. If that was true, his claim to curb the killing power of my eyes could be true too. Oh how I wish he would hurry and defeat my master so I can see the world normally for once. I heard footsteps and immediately slid back into my chamber; my heart lightened.

**_Padma's pov_**

I dragged Cedric with me, my heart racing and praying that I was not too late. As we reached there, Harry was pleadingly hissing at the wall, and some hissing was coming back. He was communicating with the snake! Just as we reached him, he finished and nodded.

"Guys, I want your help."

"What?" I asked, scared for him by his expression.

"I am going to call the basilisk out and she is going to come. After she has left, I want you to come get me and take me to the hospital."

I panicked, "Harry, what are you talking about. Please don't do something crazy."

Cedric was standing mute beside me, speechless.

Harry cupped my cheek, "Why are you panicking Padma? You trusted me in our research till now. Trust me once more. This is something only I can do, and I will have to do it if I want to keep the students safe."

"What if the snake hurts you?"

Harry chuckled, "She will hurt me, but that will be temporary. Imagine her killing your sister… would you be able to live happily ever? No. Prices must be paid, and I will make sure they are the minimum."

Cedric placed a hand on my shoulder, taking Harry's in his other, "At least tell us what you are going to do harry. Please."

Harry squeezed Cedric's hand, "I am going to lessen the effect of the basilisk's gaze. It will only petrify instead of killing. Remember our research? It needs power and strong intention to do this, and I am capable. Magic is more than silly waving of wand and a few gibberish words. I have enough control over magic to will it to do what is necessary. I have tasks for you in the meanwhile. Take help of our group if you want, but I want you to find out who is being controlled by Voldemort. Because I can sense that he is in the castle, just not fully. Don't leak this news out and keep your search amongst yourself, but you have to find that person before January. It will take that long for the mandrake juice to prepare and bring me to consciousness. And more importantly, don't alert that person. I don't know what Voldemort will do to him or her. The basilisk will not be able to point, because her gaze will still petrify the person and then Voldemort will engage in another or worse. Will you do this?"

I had tears running down my eyes. Harry here was going to sacrifice himself for the school. I only got the chance to know him this year, just a few weeks, and now he will be unavailable. Cedric hugged Harry hard, tears flowing down his eyes too. I know how much he liked him; I could see that in his eyes when he looked at Harry. Oh how beautiful the love is when it is for a person pure and noble. I too joined in the hug, memorizing the feel of Harry's arms around me, for I knew that it would take a while before I felt them again.

We stood outside the doors as Harry went inside and hissed something. After a while, a sound of stone grinding on stone came from the room, and then a few moments of silence before a thud. I waited as long as I could before rushing in, Cedric at my heels. The tail of a big snake went into an opening in the sinks which started closing. Harry was there on the ground, still as stone.

"HARRY!"

We both shouted at once before we fell on our knees beside him. Cedric wrapped his arms around my shoulders as I broke down crying.

"He promised this is temporary, didn't he? See, he is still breathing" Cedric said between silent sobs. "He will be okay, Padma. I love him too much for anything to happen to him."

"I love him too." I sobbed, "Oh god help me, but I love him too much to lose him in any way. Please come back soon Harry. Please!"

We both kissed one of his hands each and then took him to the hospital. The attacks had started.

In the following days, there grew a tense atmosphere in the school. Attacks began to happen on various students; each unpredicted and untimed. No one knew where the next attack would happen or who was doing it, only that Harry Potter was the first victim. The victims were not specific either; muggleborns, purebloods and halfbloods all shared the same fate.

Whenever our group had free time, we would stay with Harry. He was the heart of our group. The hard to digest part was that save Luna and Hannah, everyone else was in love with him. The first I knew was Daphne who confessed her love beside him when she thought she was alone. That was when I started noticing. And notice I did, the intense emotion everyone held for Harry, along with the brotherly feeling Luna and Hannah had for him. Well, they two were the only ones who did not blush when Madam Pomfrey said that she needed to change his clothes.

Even more surprising was the arrival of Charlie Weasley once every week. He met Harry at the dragon sanctuary he worked in when Harry went to visit there. He was an energetic guy, according to the twins, always ready for action. But seeing him sitting there silently holding Harry's hand and just looking at him, I prayed to heavens above and devils below. How would I compete against so many people for his affections? And more than that, what would happen to the rest when Harry will have chosen one?


	5. The Victim

**CHAPTER :: The victim**

**Hannah's pov**

The whole castle is in a mess. No one knew what to do; no one knew whom to blame, and no one knew where to escape. I don't understand why Dumbledore hasn't closed the school yet. People are being petrified left and right. Tensions are running so high that no one is able to concentrate on studies anyway. What is the point of keeping the school open? Amongst us, it's even bigger mess. Cedric and Padma told us that Harry was petrified willingly; that he knew that he would not come out safe once he goes in to nullify the gaze of the basilisk. We were a sobbing group of witches and wizards for three days before we tasked ourselves to finish the task set by Harry.

But no luck has favored us in that aspect. The villain here is a cunning fellow, who knows when to hide and when to strike. Charlie Weasley's arrival baffled me. When did he become so close to Harry that he could not bear to see him in such a state. He did not even contact his family all the times he arrived; just sat beside Harry, talked a bit with us and then left.

Today was another such visit. I could not see his sad face anymore and dragged him to our tree. We had decided to meet there anyway. The whole group was there as we sat down in the huddle.

"So any more hints?" Neville asked in general. We shook our heads.

"New year arrives in two days. I have a feeling that there will be more strikes or something more serious will happen then. How are we to find out who is doing it?" Daphne said.

"I don't know." This was Padma, "I wish I had the ability to talk to snakes too. That way we could find out what is happening."

Cedric jumped in surprise as a thought stuck him. He kissed Padma on her cheek, "Harry was right, you are the brightest Ravenclaw. Why didn't we think of that before?" He turned to the rest of us in excitement, "We can talk to snakes; or at least one snake in particular."

"Paladin!" I jumped in realization, "Of course, if he can be here then we can find out the culprit. I'll go mail Duddley… err, I mean Mrs. Robin right away."

Before I could leave the chuckling group, Hedwig flew to me as if sensing my intentions. I wrote a quick note and gave it to her, "Fly safe and fly fast Hedwig. We need Paladin here to track the one that made Harry sacrifice himself."

Hedwig nodded as if she understood me and flew away. The mood of the group seemed to have lifted for Susan started teasing me, "Mail Duddley, Hannah? How much close contact are you in with him? Any romance blossoming there?"

"Oh shut up. At least it is better than a whole group of bachelors vying for one single boy."

The whole group blushed red at the statement, save Luna who started laughing with her hands on her stomach, "Good one Hannah. But let us keep that discussion for after the basilisk has been defeated. We don't need quarrels among ourselves before then. Just keep your feelings in check for a few more days."

The whole group dispersed immediately, no one looking the other in the eye.

The next day, Hedwig placed a box parcel at my table. The whole group noticed it and met at the tree immediately after breakfast. We opened the box in excitement as we heard a hiss from inside.

:: What happened that you needed my help in this world? ::

We relayed the whole story to Paladin. He bobbed his hood.

:: I can understand and I will help you. Do you know the entrance to the chamber of Salandra? ::

We nodded. After agreeing that he would subtly contact one of us when he has some news, we deposited him in that girl's washroom. It was fascinating watching him open the entrance by the sink and disappearing into it.

**Paladin's pov**

I was just about to leave for forest when Hedwig flew into the house and deposited a letter to Mrs. Petunia. After she read it, she turned to me. I could see the worry in her eyes.

"Paladin, the friends of Harry are asking for you to come to him. They say that Harry has been petrified and that he went into it willingly to save the students from a snake. They need you as their spy. The rest they said they will write in another letter, but you have to go immediately. Will you?"

I nodded, sensing her urgency. Hedwig immediately flew to me and held me gently in her talons to take off. But Petunia stopped her, saying that it is not safe that way and that I had to go in a box. I agreed, albeit reluctantly.

After hearing the tale from the group of humans, I crawled down the amazing entrance. As I was going to the chamber, I noticed many shed scales of a large snake and bones lying here and there. When I entered the chamber, it was beautiful. A fitting place to stay for a majestic snake, even if it was lonely. But the looking around can come later. I closed my eyes and called out to the snake.

:: Salandra, the great basilisk, I request you to come out and speak to me without harming me. I come here on behalf of Harry Potter and his friends. Please give me this chance. ::

The mouth of the big statue opened and a majestic snake glided out of it. She had her eyes closed.

:: Who are you? ::

:: Greetings Salandra. I am named Paladin and I am family to Harry Potter, the one who prevented your gaze from killing anyone. ::

:: Family? ::

I told her about my coming to live with his family. The basilisk was impressed.

:: What help did they ask you to do? ::

:: To spy. I know you cannot disobey and look at your master here, but I can and I will. I will then relay the news to the friends of Harry Potter. He is to be revived from the effects of your gaze in another week. Hopefully, he will restore your freedom then. ::

:: Thank you for doing this, Paladin. I am also looking forward to that day. He did promise me that he will give me the control of the effects of my eyes if and when I become his serpent. ::

:: Let us hope for the best then. ::

It was after a few hours that she warned me, :: You better hide; I can sense someone coming down. ::

I hid on top of the statue where I could not be seen from below. A girl arrived, but her eyes were glazed and she was walking like she was very weak and not under control. But the voice that spoke was definitely not hers.

:: Salandra, my darling snake, are you ready for another foray into the unsuspecting students? I have left them alone for long and it seems to have made them lenient. ::

:: As you wish master. ::

:: Very well. Can you still not undo whatever that brat Potter has done to your gaze? Or find out how did he do that? ::

:: No master. ::

:: Very well, I guess I cannot expect so much from a snake. You are better made to follow the orders. Okay, you will emerge through the entrance this time and target whoever you see. You better do it when you sense only one or two people there. I don't want anyone to know about you. ::

:: Okay master. ::

:: Then I shall leave. This girl is losing control of herself already. Soon her magic will be mine and I will be resurrected. ::

The girl left after that. I bid farewell to Salandra and hurried to the exit. Now what? Where should I go? Suddenly, Hedwig again came in through the window, scooped me up and flew away again. Maybe she misses harry so much that she always stays on alert to help. Good of her. It was night now. She flew high up in the sky to a tower, entered a window and dropped me on someone. It was Neville.

He woke up with a start, and became alert when he saw me. He sent a note to the twins to come down to a hall and then went down himself too along with me.

"So what did you find out Paladin?"

I told them what all I have seen there.

"Who was that student? Can you describe her to us?"

:: She was short, shorter than Harry when he first came to your world, had same clothes as Harry, though I cannot see colors like you, but the shade seemed the same. It did not match with the shades of other houses. She had a short nose, with freckles on her face and had a waist length hair. ::

I described her some more. After that they sat contemplating, "She has to be from our house, is a girl and a first year. That leaves a few possibilities. Then she has long hair and short nose and freckles …"

Both the twins gasped at the same time, "Ginny!"

"Of course…"

"Did we not notice her odd behavior at the start of school?…"

"And she hardly talks to us now days…"

"She is an active person in general…"

"But she seems to have retreated into herself…"

"And we felt like she was keeping a secret."

Neville shook his head, "I am sorry guys that your sister was the victim here. What do we do now?"

"Do what Harry told us to do." Fred said

"Follow her…"

"Restrict her without her knowledge…"

"And find out how she is being controlled."

The next few days, the twins reunited with their sister, keeping an eye on her. The attack did happen on the New Year's Day and another two students were petrified. But we could not do anything about them. The mandrake potion was almost ready anyway.

**Draco's pov**

After a few days the potion was ready and we all waited eagerly by the door to see Harry awake; there were other students waiting for others too. The potion was being fed inside and one by one, the petrified students started coming, fully healthy and alive. But not Harry. We waited for some more time, but other than him, everyone has come out. We all leaned on the door to hear what was happening inside. Suddenly the door opened and we all stumbled into an irritated Professor Snape.

"I tried to stop you, but I could not. You are such impatient kids." He told us. Catching his meaning, I nodded my head in thanks and led the group inside. There was Harry, sitting on his bed, completely alright. And frowning?

"And I told you, I do not know who the attacker is, headmaster. You have been here longer; you are the headmaster for god's sake. If you don't know the happenings in the castle, how do you expect me to know them?"

"Ah, the castle is older than both of us my boy. It has secrets that we cannot unfold in one lifetime."

"And yet you are harassing me. If you could let the other victims go after just a few questions, why am I being an exception?"

I had enough; this was what Severus hinting at. The Headmaster was unnecessarily probing Harry again. I rushed to engulf Harry in a hug.

"HARRY!"

Taking my cue, the others all came to him too. We all started talking at once, and waiting for one's turn as we welcomed and hugged Harry. In all the commotion, we completely ignored Dumbledore's voice from behind us. Disappointed, he left after some tries to get our attention. As soon as he left, Harry broke out into a big laugh.

"Wow that was priceless. What a welcome for me! Thank you guys. Are all of you alright? I did not miss anything, did I?"

"Of course you missed a lot, duffer. You missed me staying in the castle for Christmas, you missed Neville slipping on a banana peel, you missed Charlie coming to visit you every week, and you missed us missing you. You could have given us some warning."

Harry laughed again and it was welcome sight to watch. After he was allowed to leave, we all directly went to our tree. We had just sat down when Charlie came running from inside the castle. As soon as he came to us, he engulfed Harry into a hug and slapped him on the back of his head.

"Of all the stupid heroic self-sacrificing things you could have done, you chose to sleep for three bloody months?"

Harry was laughing hard in his embrace, and so Charlie could not stay mad at him for long, "Just, give me a warning next time okay?"

The whole group laughed as that was the same thing I had told him at the hospital. Anyway, we took time telling him every detail that he missed when he was petrified. It was easy to notice that we interacted in synchrony, no one over-talked the other or talked in-between, and yet everyone had their say about any situation. I don't know if anyone noticed that we were in accordance with each other just so that Harry could have a chance to interact with every friend. It all came back to Harry, and we were happy with it. What a mess!

**George's pov**

"Harry you need to know that we have found the victim of Voldemort." I had to give him the news. "It is our sister Ginny. We don't exactly know how he is controlling her, but she does go towards that chamber from time to time. We've kept a constant watch on her."

Harry did not miss it, "towards the chamber? Are you not sure she went into it? How do you know anyway?"

I nodded to Fred and he took out the parchment. We had decided to reveal the Marauder's map to our friends. But the moment I took it out and Fred spelled the password, Harry leapt from his place and enveloped us in a tight hug. We blushed of course.

"You found it! You found it! Thank you thank you. I had raided Filch's office for this but did not find it. I was so disappointed that he had destroyed it. Thank you thank you." When he released us, he was smiling the biggest, widest and brightest smile we've ever seen.

"What is it?" Neville asked and Harry nodded at us. I smiled at him.

"Let me present you…"

"The best creation of all…"

"The base of all our mischief…"

"And the secret we are never caught..."

"The Marauders Map." We finished together.

"This map will show the location of any person in Hogwarts and their movement at any point of time. This was created by our sources of inspiration, the Marauders- Prongs, Padfoot, Moony and Wormtail. If only we know who they are, we would worship them."

"Prongs was my dad, James Potter. They were the best pranksters." Harry said with a smile on his face. We knew he received letters from his parents every birthday. They must have told him in those. I felt for him, really felt for him, the joy you would get when you see a memorandum of someone you love.

"Who are the rest?" Fred asked.

"Padfoot is Sirius Black, my godfather."

"Do you mean the head of house Black? The one who is in Azkaban right now?" Draco asked in surprise. Harry nodded happily.

"Yes. Moony is Remus Lupin, and Wormtail is Peter Pettigrew. They were best friends back then."

"What do you mean by 'back then'?"

Harry sighed, "They were friends in Hogwarts. Sirius Black has been framed for Potter's death, but I know the charges are not true. Peter Pettigrew's death has been framed too, I don't know why. And Remus Lupin is invisible since Potter's death." Harry replied in a flat voice. "I am doing all I can to get Sirius a trial. After that, we'll know the truth." Then he shook his head and turned to me, "Let it be. Now tell us about this map. "

"Well you can see who is there at a particular location. Here, see? The headmaster is in the office, and ah! Minister Fudge has just entered his office. Well, and here we have Ginny, who is going to the library, so I guess she is herself now. Here is Ron Weasley; he is walking to Filch's office. Guess he is not alone, at least he has the company… of…" I leaned into the map, just to make myself sure.

"Who?" Harry asked.

"Peter Pettigrew?" I was confused, how can he be in the school.

"What!?" Harry snatched the map from me and looked at it. It was for a moment before he gasped, "The rat! Ron has a pet rat. Let's see if he has a missing finger. If so, then he is Peter Pettigrew, alive and kicking."

"Do you mean that a rat is Peter?" Susan asked in confusion.

"Their Marauder names? They named it after their animagus forms. My dad was a stag, Sirius a dog, and Peter is a rat." He looked eagerly and pleadingly at me, "George, please do me a favor." He blinked at me putting on those puppy dog eyes. I pointed to Fred who was laughing silently, "I am not George, he is." Harry rolled his eyes, "if you want to be. Please will you check that rat discreetly?"

I don't know how he is able to differentiate between us so easily, and he never tells. I nodded, I can never say no to those eyes.

"Thank you. Then just keep an eye on him. We'll deal with him after Salandra."

I rolled my eyes and looked at Fred.

"What are we…"

"detective agency?"

Everyone laughed. Then Harry turned serious, though he kept smiling, "Okay, our time is running out. Here is what we will do…"

After giving us a plan on how to avoid being petrified by the snake as well as what to do after we had found the means for Voldemort, we dispersed.

**Luna's pov**

I kept a close watch on Ginny, to see what Voldemort was using to control her. It must be something that she uses most of the time, so maybe an ornament? I don't know and I was determined to find out. My luck struck in middle of February on the Valentine's Day.

Lockhart had made the day into a flourish of pink, hearts, love gifts and poems. It was giving me a headache just looking around. But I guess it was worse for my pseudo brother. Just like last year Harry had too many people admiring him. But Lockhart's settings had dared them to send him all kinds of frivolities. So from the morning onwards, he had been loaded with chocolates, letters and gifts. Harry accepted all with a thanks, but we knew that he would not keep all of it. As much as he was a die-hard addict of chocolates, no pun intended, he would distribute many of them and definitely give the non-magical ones in an orphanage, after getting them checked for spells anyway. But what made him doubling over with laughter were the dwarfs. Those were hired by Lockhart to pass along the messages and gifts anyone would like to give others. I don't know how he forced them to wear those frilly pink dresses, but the scowl on their faces negated everything jolly. Harry was given many messages, which were funny. But funnier were the self-composed poems on him, and he could not keep from laughing at them and then thanking the dwarfs. If I have to guess, some of the were sent by my own two Weasley twins.

Fred and George Weasley. Sigh! As soon as I saw them, I got the feeling that they would be very close to me. It hurt a bit when they started pining over Harry, but I like my brother too, so I could not complain. When I realized that there were many matches pining for Harry, a hope was born. Harry would have a harem and twins might be part of it. But they would also love me and be my future. I just had to wait for the right time for things to happen. I am still a first year, after all.

Anyway, I kept a close eye on Ginny's reactions. I knew she was somewhat fixated on Harry, so this day might force her feelings to act. She was sitting at the table writing into a book. But when ever Harry got a message or poem, she would listen intently and then go back to her book. After a particular poem, which made Harry laugh and the twins to tease him about it, she scowled and started writing intently…. As if… she was complaining to the book. Her expressions said so. My eyes widened. Maybe that book was the means. I immediately went to Harry and kissed him on his cheek.

"Happy Valentine's Day, dear brother of mine." I joked.

"Thank you, dearest sister of mine." He joked back. I scowled playfully, "I am your only sister."

He laughed again, "and you are my dearest one."

I shook my head and leaned towards him, speaking quietly, "Ginny keeps writing in a book. Can you go by it and tell whether it is the source or not." He nodded and turned to her twin brothers.

"Fred, George, these are too many chocolates. I won't be eating that many of them. I am taking some from each offering. Do you want to distribute the rest to someone else?" He subtly pointed at Ginny, and my twins understood. But just for fun, both of them clutched their chests in mock horror.

"Oh My!" both said together.

"Harry says..."

"Too..."

"Many..."

"Chocolates!" And both pretended to faint. Harry scowled and pushed them both off their seats, and they fell on the floor in a laughing mess. Harry folded his arms and lifted his nose in the air, "I won't give you chocolates anymore."

"Nooo Harry! Don't do that to us..."

"We will not survive."

Harry stuck out his tongue at them, which the twins replied in kind. I sighed once more; the twins are so lively and handsome together. Harry asked them once more, "So are you going to help me or not. I know the limit of eating them, and these many will be spoiled before I can complete them all."

"Sure Harry! Come with us."

They took the chocolates and stood on each side of him, taking a hand each. Then they led him to Ginny, who immediately closed her book and hid it down the others,

"Ginny! Our dearest sister…"

"Harry here has kindly decided to share his happiness…"

"And given us the duty to decide with whom,…"

"You are the first that come to our mind…"

"Please accept the offering."

They placed a big bar of chocolate on her desk and moved on to other students. Harry smiled at her and followed them. Her eyes widened and she immediately took out her book and started writing in it. Our doubts were confirmed when Harry came back at last to the group.

"The book is the means by which he is controlling her. It emits an aura, like it is possessed with something. Let's all try to retrieve it, but if it does come into anyone's hand, don't write anything in it. Okay?"

I got a feeling of myself getting harmed but safe at the end, and a feel of Harry's anguish. So I squeezed Harry's hand, "Whatever happens it is not your fault. Don't waste time wallowing or you'll lose someone you hold dear. Think, act and everything will be fine. Just remember that, okay?"

He got confused, but smiled and nodded anyway. It's okay, they don't have premonitions like I do, they will understand in time.

We all concentrated on our new mission; get the book from Ginerva. It turned out to be pretty difficult. She never left it alone. It was a month more before our luck favored us.

Ginny looked always weak and tired by now. Harry said that we have to hurry before she gets completely possessed. That evening, during dinner, she suddenly got up and went out of the doors. The twins immediately took out the map and nodded at Harry. Since I was the only first year in our group, Harry requested me with his eyes to go check on her. I smiled at him and followed her.

I caught up with her just before she entered the Washroom.

"Ginny, wait!" I said to her. She stopped in her tracks. One look at her said that she was possessed right now. Her eyes were glazy and her movements not like her. She did not even turn towards me.

"What's wrong Ginny? I saw you leaving the hall in between dinner. Any health issues you are having?"

She shook her head and I noticed the book she clung to her chest. It looked like a diary.

"Hey what's that? When did you start writing a diary? Can I see it?"

I reached for it and she hastily took a few steps back, shaking her head. I ignored that and snatched the book away from her and looked over it. It belonged to Tom Riddle.

"Tom Riddle? I read that name in the library, he was awarded an honor award during his school. Says he removed a monster creature from the school. Though it also said that a girl died that year."

Ginny's eyes focused on me and narrowed. I understood what the feeling was of that day. I knew what had to happen now.

"Ginny, you should really get rid of this diary. Harry said that Tom Riddle was a half-blood who later turned to Voldemort. I can't even imagine what effect this thing would have on you."

"You really should learn to mind your own business." Ginny said in a harsh growl which sent shivers through my spine. I took a step back.

"Has the book really possessed you, Ginny? I'll have to tell.."

She snapped venomously at me, "You'll tell no one!"

She clutched my hair and painfully hit my head into the wall. The last think I saw was her fingering the blood trickling down my head and turning to the wall. Hurry up Harry!


	6. Chamber of Secrets

**Neville's pov**

Harry waited for five minutes for either girl to return before he started gulfing down his food. He was just about to leave when the doors burst open and Filch came shouting into the hall. Harry froze in his seat.

"There is a blood message on the wall. There is blood on the wall. Come quick."

The teachers immediately stood up and hurried after him. Though the prefects were able to control much of the population, a few students managed to follow the professors. Harry, twins and I were few of them. We were led to the same washroom's entrance. On the wall was a message written with blood.

Their bodies will be sacrificed in the Chamber of Secrets for the Greatest power to rise once again. The time has come for magic to rule.

The twins caught Harry as his knees gave out. He was pale white and pointing below the message. There were two items there: the radish earrings of Luna and the Weasley bracelet of Ginny.

"No no no no…" Harry kept muttering to himself. I nodded to Fred and George and they supported Harry. We led a shocked Harry back to the Gryffindor dormitory. He bowed his head into his hands as soon as we settled him in the couch, crying.

"No no no… I shouldn't have sent her. Oh no, what have I done!"

Fred and George settled on either side of him and I knelt down on my knees in front of him, trying to console him.

"Harry, it is not your fault…"

"This is Voldemort we are dealing with…"

"He won't do any harm to them, not yet at least…"

"We need to think what to do right now…"

"Not waste our time in wailing."

"Get yourself together Harry!" Both of them said together.

I remembered what Luna had said a few days back, "Harry, remember what Luna said to you about a month ago. She knew that something like this would happen. She said to not lose your control, didn't she? Come on Harry. We will lose our sisters otherwise."

That seemed to snap Harry out of his self-criticism for he looked up quickly and nodded. Fred and George wiped away his tears as he sat up straight. I sat in the chair in front of him.

"Now think. What do we need to do?" I asked him.

"I am going to the chamber tonight."

"We are coming with you." We three said at the same time.

"No!" Harry shook his head, "I cannot risk any of you anymore."

"You already risked yourself once; we are not going to let you do that again!" Fred said to him seriously.

I nodded, "Yes Harry, You did enough to ensure we do not die from Salandra's gaze. Now we are at the same risk as you, and we are not going to let you go alone."

George added his bit, "Let us help you Harry. If it feels like we are hindering you, we will back away. But this is Voldemort we are encountering. We need to be together to fight him. Please Harry, Luna is our friend too. And our own sister is in there. Don't make us feel useless."

Harry finally agreed after a little more persuasion. Just then, Dumbledore's voice rang out throughout the common room, and possibly the rooms too.

"Students, it is with great regret I inform you that two of our students have been captured by someone unknown. The Ministry has decided that the school will have to be closed by tomorrow. Please pack your bags and be ready to leave by tomorrow morning's train. Thank you."

"What is he doing?" Fred snapped, "Will he do nothing to save our sister and friend?"

Harry stood up. He was shivering in anger, "Let's go." He ordered.

"To the chambers, Harry?" I asked him for confirmation.

"No. Yes, we will go there immediately after, but first I need to know what our esteemed headmaster is planning to do. I want to help him if he shows the slightest inclination to save our sisters. Otherwise, I'll... I'll..."

"You'll do nothing to him." Fred snapped at Harry.

"Yes Harry. We need not trust him anymore..."

"but we don't need him as a constant pain in our butt."

"You are right that he is more powerful than any of us..."

"so taking his help is beneficial..."

"but only if he is willing to help us."

I finished for them, "We will save them either way, Harry. Together."

I placed my hand on his shoulder in support, and was taken in a tight hug in return. Nodding to each other, the four of us left for his office.

His office which was guarded by a gargoyle. I hit my head as I remembered a tidbit of information.

"We need a password for the gargoyle to move aside. We did know the password!"

But Harry, my sweet Harry, in all his pain and frustration, just leaned his head onto the statue and mumbled, "If you can hear me Hogwarts, please let us into the office of headmaster. Two of your children are in danger and we need to talk to the headmaster. Please hear my plea and let us in." he almost sobbed.

To our surprise, the gargoyle nodded and moved aside. We hurriedly walked up the stairs leading to the doors of his office. The door was partially opened and we could hear voices from within.

"… and this has gone on for long enough. If this continues, we would be forced to remove you as the Headmaster for your inability to act."

"If the board decides so, then so be it. But I would be very interested to know how my successor will deal with a problem that we don't even know the reason for. Because as I see it, not only I am liable to be removed as headmaster, Hogwarts would very much shut down if you fail to find the reason and stop it."

"I will discuss this with you in detail, Albus."

And then there was someone announcing 'The Minister's Office' and a swoosh; it must have been someone flooing out. Suddenly the door opened wide and the headmaster smiled sadly at us.

"Good evening my boys, please come in."

"Sir, we want to know what you are doing to get Luna and Ginny out of whatever danger they are in." Harry came straight to the point.

"I do not know where they are to start with, Mister Potter. I am trying my best to locate them."

"What will you do after all the students have left?"

"Nothing that I am not doing now. I will do my best to search for them. But as the message states, they may be lost forever."

One of the twins lost his control with his sad speech, "For your information, one of them is my best friend and another is my sister. You cannot just give up like that and lose them."

"I can understand your irritation Mister Weasley, but what would you like me to do?"

Harry spoke in a deadly voice that showed us the extent of his anger. We had never seen him like that, "You Are The Headmaster. Use You Authority And Connection With The Castle To Find Out Where They Are."

The headmaster narrowed his eyes, "You seem very knowledgeable Mister Potter."

That only angered him more and the things around the office started to shake, "For god's sake, you are not lord almighty. Anyone can interact with the castle. You have the authority to connect with the castle and order it. Did you do it or not?"

Headmaster Dumbledore's eyes widened for just an instant, "I did it, but the information is protected from me by the founder's guard. That is, there are guards established over a few secrets by the founder's themselves. Those are guarded even from me. I am sorry."

"Both of them are in the Chamber of Secrets whose entrance is in the same washroom where the message is written. That much is obvious. What are you going to do about it?" Harry asked him again. It looked like he was giving the headmaster chances to give the right answer before he gave up information.

"What else do you know, Mister Potter?"

"For hell's sake, why are you so fixated on what information I have? I say that you demolish that washroom and find out that entrance."

"And unleash the monster that must be within?"

"You are supposed to be the greatest wizard, why are you scared of what you might find? To keep from facing the monster, you are willing to sacrifice two students? That is worse than being Lockhart.

Albus shook his head, "Please boys, trust me that I will do my best to search for your friends. The grief for them seems to have clouded your minds. Pack up and take some rest." He turned around showing us his back; in effect dismissing us."

Harry stamped out of the room. Fred said in a low voice, very seriously, "I admired you for being the protector till now. Why am I getting the impression that you do not care? At all?

The headmaster turned around to answer, "Mister Weasley, I…", but we just shook our heads and walked out of the room. This was useless.

Harry was leaning back on the wall outside the gargoyle, his head raised and eyes closed. As soon as we came down, he nodded at us and we followed him to the washroom. He took a beautiful silvery velvety black cloak from his pocket.

"Fred, George, will you go back to the dorms and bring out your brooms and mine?"

The twins nodded, "what is someone sees us? We are out after curfew."

Harry handed them the cloak, "Go under this. Be careful. Be as quick as you can. DO NOT get caught."

I gasped when the twins disappeared as soon as they covered themselves with the cloak. When the twins realized this, they nodded to Harry in thanks and left immediately.

"Why did you ask them to go Harry?"

"They would not be able to stand still. Their sister is just beyond the floor." He answered sadly.

I understood and kept quiet. We were going down into a very dangerous mission, with no guarantee on what we are going to see.

When the twins returned, Harry hissed and opened the door; we flew down the entrance and came to an inner door. Paladin was waiting for us there.

:: I was waiting for you to come. You need to hurry. That monster man is nearly done forming. ::

Harry looked at the three of us, "Cover yourselves with the cloak. Please. Don't come out unless you think you can help. There will be girls unconscious there, but do not rush into helping them. We don't know what we are facing."

We agreed and covered ourselves. Harry hissed the door open once again.

**George pov**

Inside the door was a wide path leading to a very big hall. The path had a line of snake statues on both sides, big enough to touch the very high roof. We walked behind Harry, trying our best to remain as silent as possible. When we reached the end of the passage, my heart nearly stopped when I saw Luna and Ginny lying still on the floor. I would have rushed to them if not for the image of a boy standing in between them. He was not solid either, more like an image solidifying slowly.

Harry rushed to them instead, not bothering about that boy, and checked the pulses of both the girls. Him relaxing his shoulders must mean they were both okay.

"What did you do to them, Tom?" Harry snarled at the boy.

"Don't call me by that name. You must be Harry then, the one that this girl referred to."

"What? You don't know about me? If I can beat you once, I bet I can beat you again."

"You beat me? Hmmm… Interesting." The boy (Tom?) mused. But then he smiled.

"Let's see your claims if they are true. Match the might of the Slytherin's heir and prove your worth, boy." He turned to big statue of a face behind him and hissed something in parseltongue. The mouth of the face opened and a huge snake, I mean a really huge 50 feet long snake, crawled out of it.

"Shit!" Fred whispered beside me.

THIS was Salandra? Tom hissed to her something and the snake immediately looked for Harry and lunged at him. Harry did not meet her eyes; he instead tried to punch Tom, but his hand went right through him. Harry nodded to himself. Salandra curled her tail around Harry, but he jumped over it and discreetly motioned for us to come to a tunnel by the side of the chamber.

Still hidden, we went into the tunnel as quick as we could, but Salandra must have felt our movement for she immediately snapped her head in our direction. We froze in our place, holding our breaths and closing our eyes. She lowered her head just in front of us. I am sure she could smell us now if nothing else. But she had closed her eyes, I did not know why. She flicked her tongue out and I saw it touch the cloak.

My heart nearly stopped when she did that, but she did nothing and instead went inside the tunnel. We stayed outside it, hoping for the best. There were a few minutes of silence, and then there was the sound of water rushing. We stepped back as water came gushing from the tunnel, washing both Harry and Salandra out.

Tom started hissing angrily at her, but the snake was twisted in knots into herself. Harry shouted from where he was washed to.

"Now. Neville, get Ginny out of here. Fred, see to Luna. George, get the diary Ginny is clutching and wait for me. Now!"

Harry started firing spells at Tom, who was surprised at our appearance only for a moment before he too retaliated with the wands of Ginny and Luna. In my peripheral vision, I saw Neville running to Ginny and slowly dragging her out along the passage to the door. Fred went to Luna and enervated her. I rushed to Ginny. She indeed was holding the diary in her arms. I had to peel off her burnt fingers one by one before I could get the book. I nodded to Neville and ran back to George. Luna was awake now.

I was beside her and we brothers were helping her stand up when I saw her eyes widen. She immediately pushed us both away onto the floor, and my eyes widened as a spell hit her leg. She screamed in pain as she collapsed on the ground again.

"Are you alright Luna?"

"I broke my knee, I cannot stand."

"Why did you have to push us away? We would have gladly taken the hit. Now look at you!" Fred said in caring frustration.

"And that's why I did it. I like you both too much to let you get hurt. Go, help your Harry. He is more important."

I cupped her cheeks, "We came here for you Luna, and we are staying by you."

We turned to see Harry firing spells at Salandra and Tom, and dodging their attacks at the same time. It was scary how close his movements were from each attack. That's not to say he was not hurt. I could see his scraped knees, a trail of blood from his back, and a swollen red cheek. I was afraid to even wonder how many injuries he had under his clothes. Vigorous attacks from Salandra had chucked off many blocks from the walls around, showering us with the debris. We would have gone to help, but I am not sure we are as skilled as him in dodging. Instead we started firing spells from where we were standing while shielding Ginny and ourselves at the same time. It was difficult. Tom seemed not to be able to move from his position, as he was not solid yet. But he had gained enough to fire weak spells from the girls' wands. His repertoire of spells covered his weakness. One spell sliced my arm, another hit a punch on Fred's chest, and yet another reported burns on both of us. But we did not allow another scratch on Luna.

Tom noticed us and hissed at Salandra. She slowly turned towards us. He must have ordered her to attack us. Harry did not waste this opportunity as he jumped over her body and came to stand with us. He gave his wand to Luna.

"Shields now!"

I thought of how much I wanted Harry, Luna and my brother to be safe and shouted 'protégé' along with the other three. I spared a moment of surprise Harry cast his shield without a wand, but then had to focus on my shield. Our combined shield was able to block Salandra as she lunged at us. She drew back as if she was punched and shook her head. We saw it all through the shadows, not looking up at her. She came down for another strike. She hit the shield with her tail and then her head, and kept repeatedly hitting it until it broke. Tom was helping her from where he was standing, but his spells were weak. Luna was the first to fall unconscious, weak as she already was. I was tired too, but I was determined to hold on till I can.

"Give me the diary George." Harry shouted under strain. His shield was blocking the major part of the attacks and it was affecting him bad. I handed over the diary to him.

"Drag Luna away."

"But Harry…"

"NOW!"

Fred and I dropped my shield and immediately started dragging Luna away. We had just gone a few feet when Harry's shield broke with resounding boom. Salandra hissed, immediately baring her poisonous fangs and flaring her hood. In a flash, she came down and bit Harry, though my vision was blocked by her hood. When she came up again, Harry's arm was bleeding where she bit, and he was staggering as his vision was fading. At the same time…

"No… No, this can't be happening. No. YOU! You all will pay for this. I will come back and then you will all pay for what you did. I am the greatest wizard and anyone standing against…" His voice faded as flashes of light started appearing in between his image before he faded away too. A piercing scream came of the book as a shadowy wisp emerged out of it and then faded into nothing.

Fred and I immediately rushed to Harry.

"Oh no… What can we do?"

Harry chuckled weakly and then his breath began to choke. All he managed was, "Help… me… a'kes."

We did not understand what he said, so we looked in awe when Fawkes flashed beside him. On look at him and the beautiful phoenix began to cry. This broke me, if even the pure bird was crying. But Fred tugged my arm, "Look George. Look!"

The wound was Healing! Then I remembered the best part of a phoenix, healing tears. We watched as the basilisk's bite started to close and heal, and Harry's breathe even out. Fawkes did not stop there, he cried a tear in Harry's open mouth, and slowly, our Harry started coming to consciousness. Just then, we heard a cough from our back. Luna was awake! Fred immediately rushed to her and brought her to Harry in her arms.

Harry looked at Fawkes, "You saved my life. Thank you!" He said to him. The phoenix nodded and bent his head sideways. Harry laughed, "You are the best ever. But before I accept your help, please tell me you won't tell all this to Dumbledore."

It seemed that our Harry can actually talk to the phoenix, because then he said, "I know he can't hear you. But you are powerful enough to communicate with him. I don't want anyone to know our participation, and I want to help Salandra too. Will you help us and keep our secret?"

Fawkes gave a smooth trill, agreeing. Harry then turned to Fred, "Please go outside and find Neville. Cast a sleeping charm at your sister and bring him and the invisibility cloak."

Fred nodded and went running. He came back soon. Neville looked sad, "Am I so weak that you found it wise to keep me away?"

Harry smiled and took him in a hug, "No Neville, I trusted you enough to subdue Ginny if required. Voldemort was taking her life and magic slowly to come to life himself. By taking her away and separating her from the book, you stopped his progression. Tell me, did Ginny not move at all during all thus time?"

"She did. She thrashed for some time and then once woke up and tried to come inside. I held her to keep her outside."

"See, you did your part. Voldemort had influenced Ginny enough to be able take control over her. Do you think that Fred or George would have been able to concentrate with Ginny like that? What if he decided to make her harm herself? Would they be able to stop her? No Neville, this was their sister. Never berate yourself, you did your part." Then he chuckled. "Well if you are masochist enough to think you need to be in the fight, I can call Salandra again."

We had forgotten about the snake. She was lying curled up at the other end of the chamber with her eyes closed. She was acting docile. Ah! Harry is her master now.

Neville gave a shiver when he looked at her, and then chuckled. We all laughed for a while until Harry winced.

"Okay, there is a pocket in the cloak. Take out the minimized jar and tap it with your wand. I did as told and smiled at Fred. This was a charming experiment of ours. I enlarged it.

"This is a healing potion I nicked from the infirmary. Fawkes, this sounds odd but can you cry a little once more?"

The golden phoenix let out a happy trill as if it was laughing and then cried three drops of tears into the potion. Harry, Neville, Fred and I each took a gulp from the potion and could feel our injuries healing. That done, Harry turned to us.

"Okay, so this is what we will do. I don't want our participation be known. So this is the story that will happen. First, Fawkes you will have to bring Dumbledore here. Be it by force or persuasion. Then Salandra will emerge out of the entrance and hand over the diary and a note. Fawkes will then deliver the two girls. The end!"

"Ummm Harry" Luna chuckled, "You are missing out a lot of details."

"Of course, but first, I will have to cure the gaze of Salandra."

What happened next, I will never forget. Harry called Salandra to her; He closed his eyes and concentrated. When he opened them, we could feel the power radiating around him. He sent a blast of magic to her; it flashed so bright that I was blinded for a moment. When my vision refocused, Harry was looking up and smiling. And for the first time, I looked into the eyes of a huge basilisk.

"I have modified her vision to give her control over it. It will be up to her whom she sees, whom she petrifies and whom she kills." Salandra hissed and Harry nodded at her, "And she promises to do what Salazar wanted her to do; protect the school and its residents."

"Now the letter. Who wished to write it?"

Fred raised his hand, "Okay. Make it as snaky and decorated as you want. This is a letter from Salazar Slytherin."

This diary was the bearer of a foul soul who wished to harm the beloved students of Hogwarts. I placed Salandra here to protect them; not harm them. She petrified them as a disguise to give me time to defeat Tom Riddle, and I have finally succeeded with the help of Fawkes and her. I am handing over the students to you, headmaster. Never overlook their care again. Hogwarts is kind, but even she doesn't give many chances. Don't misuse yours.

"Okay, I get it." I finally said, "This puts Dumbledore in permanent suspense and clears Salandra's name. Cool!"

Harry turned to Luna, "Sorry Luna, but you will have to bear to be the talk of the school for some time. I'm sorry I cannot prevent it."

Luna smiled at him, "Its okay brother. You are free to make it up to me with as many gifts as you want."

Harry kissed her cheek and then stunned her. We placed her carefully along Ginny and then Fawkes flashed us back in the common room. Harry stoked her neck and feathers, "Thank you for helping us Fawkes. Now go, be the hero."

Fawkes trilled and flashed away. Harry groaned and slumped into the seat nearby, "God, I need a chocolate!" Fawkes suddenly flashed above him, dropped a chocolate on his head and then flashed away again with a teasing trill. Harry looked stunned for a moment, before we all broke down laughing. Finally, with a kiss on Harry's cheek, we retired to our dorms, so as not to arise suspicion.

The morning breakfast was a gloomy one. Everyone was having their last breakfast at Hogwarts, and it was a sad sight to see. But then the headmaster arrived into the hall and clinked his glass.

"Attention students! I would like to say a few words. Hogwarts, the school you study in, is one that teaches the young, takes care of them and protects them from harm. Yesterday, two of them were kidnapped by someone unknown. Hogwarts has shown sentience like never before, and protected them from the danger as well as destroyed the criminal. We are free of the danger that has plagued us all the year."

Everyone's mouth was agape at the moment, as the realization set in.

"So, as you must have realized, Hogwarts is not closing and you better finish off any pending works for tomorrow's classes. And the best part of all, please re-welcome amidst us, Ginny Weasley and Luna Lovegod."

The doors opened and both of them walked in. Every student, irrespective of the house, stood up to clap and welcome them; happy that there have been no lives lost. The sad atmosphere turned merry once again.


	7. Second summer break

**_CHAPTER :: Second summer break_**

**_Remus' pov_**

I was fired today. _Sigh! _Another job lost. Now I will have to look for one to pay my rents due this month. What a mess! Being a werewolf was no life. Well I used to enjoy it during my school years and after, when my friends were there with me in their animagus forms just to keep me company. But now that they are all gone, I am left alone in my misery. What was worse was that I was unable to contact the only child of James and Lily, Harry Potter. I was injured fighting in a death eaters' raid in a wizarding colony when simultaneous attack happened on the Potters. I went into a coma, and my colleagues who knew about my situation had to keep me away from public to keep me being a werewolf a secret. It was two years before I woke again, and by then, no one knew where Harry lived. I even tried finding address of Lily's sister Petunia Dursely, but to no avail.

I had a feeling that Sirius was innocent; he was the most loyal guy to be around, but I had no resources or sources to prove his innocence. So here I was locked away in meager jobs, just surviving by. I had just come out of the shower in my dingy flat when a snowy white owl flapped to my window. She was beautiful, and holding a letter.

I shakily reached for the letter; it has been so long since I had contacted the wizarding world. Harry must have completed his second year by now. I have been sending a few too many owls during his school years, but they all came back undelivered. Someone must have cast a strong protection on him for him to be inaccessible. I opened the letter.

_Hey Remus,_

_It's Harry here. Remember me? Well, I am sorry for contacting you so late, but I did not know what happened to you after the attack; if you were even around. I learnt a lot about you from my parents' letters and the few from you that you wrote for my birthdays. But for all the love you showed me, you never contacted me. I am sorry to say I assumed that you were no more. Only recently did I learn that my mother had cast a protection even overcoming the headmaster's protections; one that would allow no one not approved by my aunt to contact me. I told my aunt yesterday to just try and approve of you (she does not know you, so she was wary), and lo behold, I got total of seven undelivered letters. By reading them, I get the impression that you've written more; they must have returned back to you. I am sorry Uncle Moony._

_Please do come to visit me this summer break any time you wish. I am enclosing a note with the address written. Do destroy it as usual after reading it. You might be pleased to note that I am fighting for the release of Sirius after he has a trial, for I do not believe him guilty. Moral support from you would be nice too. The rest we can talk when you come here; I am hoping you would. I have even enclosed some money to make your payments and travel arrangements. Please do not consider this a charity. Did you know that my papa and Sirius had opened an account with yearly deposits for you? It would have taken just my signature for you to live comfortably (Papa said in letters that a life of werewolf is very difficult when alone.). But it did not because of my ignorance. I am sorry for all the hardships you might have faced till now._

_Please come, at least once, so I could at least meet a beloved part of my past, and hopefully make it my present._

_Yours lovingly,_

_Harry James Potter_

_Alias, your little cub_

I had to wipe away my tears repeatedly to finish the letter. Harry was alright. Harry did not forget me. Harry still wanted to know me.

These thoughts brought me to my knees, crying in joy. The owl hooted in question and I immediately rushed to give her some bread and water as I wrote my reply. After sending the post, I started gathering whatever meager possessions I had. I was going to meet Harry.

I know I never visited this place ever, it was a complete muggle downtown after all, but as I approached the house in Privet Drive, it felt like I was coming home to family. It may as well be; Harry was one of the two I considered family anyway. I knocked on the door and Petunia Robins opened the door for me.

"Mister Lupin?" she asked for confirmation. I nodded.

"Please come in. Harry has been jumping off the walls ever since you wrote to him that you are coming."

I smiled with giddy excitement I have not felt in a long time. There were a line of photos on the wall showing both Harry and his cousin. I saw him literally jumping on and off the couch with his cousin, and a… damn! My werewolf instincts growled as I deadly snake slither towards Harry, but before I could act, Harry saw me a gave a loud whoop.

"Uncle Moony!"

He ran fast into my arms, which I had spread without even realizing, forcing me to take a few steps back to balance myself. I held him for a long while, feeling his heartbeat against mine. Then I pushed him back and looked at him in my arms, connecting to the young three year old I last saw. He looked healthy, had a happy smile, content in his eyes and confidence in his demeanor. Petunia had raised him well.

"Thank you Petunia." I told her, "thank you for taking care of my little cub when I could not. You did a fantastic job. Thank you!"

She smiled at me, "He is my nephew, Remus. He was a darling to raise."

Harry dragged me around introducing to his family, even the snake. I was not comfortable with Paladin until Harry shared his ability with me. Only then I realized that this snake had a soft spot for this family. We spent the whole morning with him updating me with every major incident in his life, even the adventures he had at Hogwarts. I laughed, cried, grieved and felt happy at his narrations; I felt alive after a long time.

I was invited to stay with them. I hesitated. But Harry would have none of it. It was surprising how easy it was for him to convince me with a few simple arguments.

"Don't you want to stay with me? We'll even sleep in the same room and share more stories!"

"Of course I would love to stay with you, but …"

"Don't you feel comfortable around me anymore? Am I not the same Harry cub anymore?"

"You are, Harry."

"Do you have a home to go to? Not a hotel or a rental. A home where people would welcome you?"

"No." I sighed.

"Do you think we are faking our enthusiasm to have you with us?"

"No, I don't."

"Then you are staying here aren't you? You did say that you will stand with me to welcome Sirius home."

And I was sold. After all his questions, even I got thinking why I was rejecting in the first place.

A few days had passed by happily when Charlie Weasley came to visit. I had known him a little when he was a kid. When I learned he grew into a strong boy fascinated with dragons, I was not surprised; he was always the active kid among the Weasley kids.

"Hey Harry!" He slumped into the seat on the couch where Harry was seriously working on his summer work. He immediately closed the book and turned to his friend. I observed their interaction closely. Something was different.

"So Harry, I got a surprise for you." He produced a closed box with a small hole in it. Harry's eyes widened.

"Is this who I think it is?" Charlie nodded happily. Harry immediately jumped into Charlie's arms, which opened on reflex and kissed him on his cheek, "You are the best, Charlie. You'll never let me consider otherwise." He cuddled into him and Charlie instinctively draped his arms around his shoulders. I noticed the blush on Charlie's face, as well as the familiarity with which Harry was cuddling into him. Almost like they were… lovers? But then my attention diverted to the smug face with which Harry was looking at me.

"What?" I asked.

Harry stood up in his seat, "Presenting to you, the sneakiest bastard, the cheating expert, the one with a dirty tail and missing finger…" My eyes widened. Was it…, "the one and only stinkiest rat in the world. Wormtail aka Peter Pettigrew."

The wolf in me snarled. That bastard was indeed alive. My suspicions were true; how could he die with just a finger remaining? I jumped from my seat to snatch the box to tear the rat apart with my claws. But Charlie caught me mid-jump and Harry shouted at me, "Calm down! Calm down Moony. Do you want to see your friend released or not? Don't condemn Sirius to Azkaban forever. Calm down!"

It took a moment, but I regained my senses and slumped down in my seat. Harry immediately sat down in front of me on his knees and looked into my eyes.

"Remus! Moony! Listen to me. We are going to hand him over in the ministry and get Sirius released. Hold your patience until then, okay?"

I sighed, put my head in my palms and nodded. I can do that.

"I need your help, both of yours actually. How many tracking charms do you both know?"

We looked at him in interest as he laid out his plan to us. This boy was a sneaky and clever one himself. We agreed to his plans. And so the next day, we were at the ministry with this box. Our first visit was at Head of Defense Amelia Bones Office. I remember her; she was a year senior and a very strict prefect and head girl. We were surprised to see Severus Snape at her desk. Harry began to giggle and Snape shot him a warning look, "Let this leak out and you will be serving more detentions than classes for your stay at Hogwarts Potter." But it did not stop his giggles; they became full blown laughter instead. Severus rolled his eyes and bid farewell to us. Amelia Bones winked at Harry and let us in immediately. She called for a witness, an officer named Hanard Drasken. When she performed the necessary charms to check the identity of the rat, her eyes widened.

"This seals it. The ministry is full of bigots and idiots who cannot think a simple logic or follow a simple rule. You have my support, Mister Potter. I will petition for a trial immediately."

She told Mister Drasken to collect the box and told him for which trial it should be presented. We had cast necessary tracking, warning charms and teleportation charms on Wormtail if he ever managed to escape. Knowing the incompetent ones and the vile ones in the ministry, he more than likely would.

The emergency trial was held in two days; Amelia Bones was persistent about it. As soon as we registered our entrance into the trial, I conjured a hat and sunglasses for Harry, hiding his identity. He said he had not yet confirmed a trustworthy proxy for the Potter's seat, and had given the day off for the previous one. He did not trust the one appointed by the Headmaster, as he would cast votes on the headmaster's direction only. Since we were early, there were not many people around, so no one noticed me walking with Harry to his seat. After situating him, I went up to the audience gallery to sit with Charlie.

Soon the seats started filling. I was surprised at how the influence of Potters had faded, for no one greeted or even bothered with Harry. When Charlus Potter, James father was in the seat, his word was given a lot of weightage, and he never let his opinion waver for threats, manipulations or majority.

The minister of magic, Cornelius Fudge, entered at last and took his seat as the President of this meet. With one look around, he tapped his gravel to call the meeting to order.

"I commence the emergency trial for Sirius Black to prove his guilt or innocence. It has come to our notice that he was not given a proper trial during the war before being sentenced to Azkaban. This trial has been promoted by the chair of Potter. Please bring in the accused."

The doors opened and two guards came in holding a thin and frail man; my friend Sirius Black. He looked nothing like the strong mischievous persona he was during his school and later his auror days. This Sirius looked weak, tired, beaten down and haunted. Tears rolled down my eyes as I looked at him, and I nodded in gratitude when Charlie held my trembling hand in his.

Sirius was seated in the chair of accused, which had chains tied to it to subdue any resistance. Thankfully they did not bind him.

"Please state the charges against the accused." Fudge said. The man who would note down the meeting as it proceeded, called Quiller, stood up, "The accused is charged of giving away information to he-who-must-not-be-named which led to the deaths of James Potter and his wife, Lily Potter. He is also accused of the death of Peter Pettigrew and 15 muggles through an explosion spell cast in a muggle locality in view of muggles."

"The defense may introduce themselves and begin. How does it answer the charges?"

We never appointed a lawyer, but one stood up anyway. I saw Harry curl his hand into a fist. This made him angry, I could tell.

"I am Jack Smithson, attorney in favor of Sirius Black. I plead Not Guilty." His voice was not strong nor was his confidence. He had been placed to lose.

Another lawyer stood up to counter him, "I am Louis Sector, lawyer against Sirius Black. Please state your defense."

"Sirius Black's wand did not have any spell that caused the explosion. He was also one of our reputed aurors and had fought for the Ministry in his term. He could not have been with he-who-must-not-be-named. Also, Peter Pettigrew was one of his best friends. Why would he kill him?"

Sirius gave a weak defeated chuckle from his chair. He understood what was happening. I wish I had the right to argue there.

"He could have used another wand and destroyed it. Even if he used it, we cannot trust that his dark family did not have means to erase previous spells. Ministry have been deceived my many during that time. And maybe his loyalty to dark lord was stronger than his friendship. Your argument holds no ground. Please present if you have any facts and proofs."

"I was given a box of proof, though I do not know its contents. I wish for it to be presented."

"Approved!" Fudge declared and the box that we submitted to Miss Bones was brought to court. But when they opened it, there was nothing in it. Charlie sighed beside me and squeezed my arm reassuringly. It seems Harry's doubts were right and I prayed our precautions have been enough and Peter is in his grasp.

Sector snorted in his seat, "Please show your proof."

Smithson shook his head, "I did not know what this box contained, and certainly did not know it was empty. I rest my case."

Fudge nodded, "Do anyone have anything to add to this trial?" he did not wait for an answer, "If not, then I declare…"

"You did not even wait for anyone to say something, Minister." Harry interrupted him in a loud voice, "I have lot of things to add."

"Please identify yourself." Fudge's voice wavered.

"Harry James Potter." Sirius's head snapped up at that name. His once tired eyes now looked at Harry with love as Harry walked down the aisle into the court. Harry smiled at him briefly when their eyes connected and I could see his godfather's eyes fill with tears. He stood in front of us.

"I plead Madam Amelia Bones to the court please. I also plead Mister Drasken to the court."

"Approved."

They both came into the court and took their seats. Harry questioned them.

"Miss Bones, Did you or did you not perform necessary charms to validate the identity of the proof."

"I did."

"Mister Drasken, did you or did you not witness her spell casting and the proof."

Drasken gulped, "I did."

"Miss Bones, Did you or did you not give him the proof for safekeeping?"

"I did."

"Mister Drasken, is it or is it not true?"

"It is true."

"Then please pray tell me why is it missing?"

Drasken was sweating now, "I don't know. I had handed over the box in the Department where the proofs are kept. I do not know the name of the officer whom I gave it to. He is the one who always is in that office."

"Thank you for accepting your inability to do your work properly. You may leave."

Drasken hung his head and left. Harry then called for another,

"I plead Mister Smithson into the court please."

The said lawyer stood up in his seat, "I am the lawyer appointed in favor of Mister Black. You cannot call me into the court. You are but a child, however famous you are. Don't use your fame on me you inso…"

"WATCH YOUR TONGUE Mister Smithson! Younger or not, you are talking to the Lord of house Potter, and you will speak with the respect that is due. Did you or did you not rest your case in terms of Sirius Black?"

Smithson hesitated, in shock at being reprimanded by a kid, and a person of higher authority at the same time, "I did because…"

"Then you are no longer the lawyer of this case. Come forth here, or be charged for your part in the false judgment."

He tried again, "There was no false judgment. Mister Black…"

Harry said to him in a very serious angry voice, "You are only increasing your mistakes, Mister Smithson. That would be Lord Black for you. Now I am asking you for the last time to come into the court."

Smithson hung his head and came into the court. The audience to this debate was speechless at the turn of events and the command of Harry.

"Who appointed you as the lawyer?"

"I received a letter from someone unknown. It was sure case so I took it up."

"You were sure that Lord Black is guilty?"

"Well, there must have been a reason that he was put in Azkaban."

"And yet you take up a case in favor of him not being guilty?"

Smithson gulped; no answer.

"Did you or did you not research the case Mister Smithson?"

"I did."

"Then how come you do not even know what evidence you have to prove his innocence?"

He said in a low voice, "It was in the letter."

Harry turned to the minister, "Mister Smithson showed his incapability in taking up a case given by an unknown letter with some unknown evidence, and to argue something quite opposite of what he believed. I plead you to ignore whatever arguments he presented."

Fudge could not do anything else but agree; especially when Harry seemed not to hesitate in pointing out people's stupidities.

"Now, I am going to present you the proof, Mister Sector."

He took out another box from his pocket and presented it before everyone.

"Madam Bones, I request you to take an oath of validity for the spells you cast in this session. Then I want you to validate the proof in the same way as you did in the office."

Harry was leaving no stones unturned. Miss Bones took the oath as requested and opened the box to show the rat to everyone. When he saw the rat, Sirius snarled "Wormtail!" from his seat and got up to get the rat. The chains immediately came alive and bound him to the seat.

Miss Bones performed the necessary spells aloud in succession to show that the rat was alive, that it was an animagus, that the name of the animagus was Peter Pettigrew and finally to restore him to his human form. In front of us was Peter Pettigrew, pudgy, dirty and breathing alive.

"Peter Pettigrew is not dead as everyone believed. I do not even understand how the aurors believed a single finger to mean his death when they could even count the bodies of number of dead muggles around."

Sector got up from his seat, "That does not prove his innocence, Mister… err Lord Potter."

"Of course, I plead giving him veritaserum to know the truth."

Sector rose from his seat, "Veritaserum is a dangerous truth potion which causes fatigue to anyone who takes it for more than five minutes and is fatal when overdosed, Mister Potter. It is used only in very important cases, and never with the one part of the case."

"Thank you for explaining the properties of the potion, Mister Smithson. And that is the precise reason why I have requested its use. Mister Pettigrew is not a part, he is the evidence, and is innocence of Lord of the most ancient and most noble house Black not an important case Mister Smithcase? He is a person of prestigious honor and it would be crime to commit him for a crime he is innocent of. If he is indeed guilty as you seem to believe, at least our audience will be assured that the ministry did no wrong in his case."

I had to control my snicker at the minister's expression. He was shaking his head in the beginning and had raised his gravel, most likely to deny the request. But now he was in fix. He could not deny any of Harry's statements.

"Approved!"

Peter was seated in another chair with chains and enervated. As soon as he woke up, he looked around and panicked; he tried to get out of his seat only be chained again. He was immediately dosed with three drops of veritaserum and his vision became unfocussed.

"What is your name?"

"Peter Pettigrew."

"How old are you?"

"33 years."

The officer who dosed him nodded and stepped back. Then Harry came forward.

"Did or did not Sirius Black betray James and Lily Potter?"

"Did not."

"Who leaked their location?"

"I did." A few people gasped.

"Were you or were you not willingly working for Voldemort when you betrayed them?" This time even more people gasped on hearing his name.

"I was."

"Did or did not Sirius Black cast the spell which caused the explosion among muggles? How did explosion occur?"

"Did not. I cast a fire at the nearby petrol bunk."

Harry was doing good, leaving no loopholes in the questioning for escape.

"Was or was not Sirius Black the secret keeper for the Fidelius charm cast on Potter's location?"

"Was not."

"Who was the secret keeper for the Fidelius charm cast on Potter's location?"

"I was."

"Who cast the…"

Harry was interrupted by Headmaster Dumbledore, "Is it not enough my boy? I am sure Sirius Black has been effectively proven innocent. I don't think Mister Pettigrew can stand the potion much longer."

Harry nodded and stepped back for the antidote to be given. I was confused. Harry was going on so well. Why did he step back at the most important question? We would have known who cast the Fidelius charm. Maybe he was in the crime too…

I growled when I understood. Charlie asked me why, "He knows. Dumbledore knows who cast the Fidelius charm, or he may have cast the charm himself. He knew who the secret keeper was and he kept silent till now. That old coot!"

Harry looked at the Minister, "Sir, I have presented my case. Anyone is now free to question any more doubts regarding his innocence. Otherwise, I plead for him to be released a free man."

I looked around for any questions, but no one raised their hand. But after maybe a minute, just as the minister opened his mouth to speak, a voice came from the side.

"Hem Hem! I have a few questions Mister Potter." A woman spoke in a sickly sweet voice. It grated on my nerves.

"May I know your name madam?"

"Of course. I am Dolores Umbridge, Senior Undersecretary to the Mister of Magic. My question is…"

Harry cut her off, "As per the rules of the Ministry, you are supposed to come down into the court in front of everyone for any participation in the case."

"I am the Senior Undersecretary. I do not…"

"You must know the rules very well then, and I presume that you do not consider yourself greater than the law."

She huffed and walked her stubby self down to the court, "I have come as per your request Mister…"

"You have ceded the law madam. Please state your statements truthfully."

She huffed again.

"Hem hem! You seem to like cutting people off in their speech Mister Potter. If this is how you decide to convince the court, then I should like to tell you that I am above your manipulations."

Harry looked ahead and kept silent, not rising to her bait.

"Nothing to say Mister Potter?"

"You are free to assume whatever you want to Madam Umbridge, for assumptions don't make the truth. Even the ministry assumed and placed an innocent man in Azkaban. So please assume to your heart's content and place your inquiry." He answered in a straight voice, again dispelling any doubt that might have risen among the audience.

"Hem Hem! What are you studying, Mister Potter?"

"I am about to start my third year this year at Hogwarts."

"How did you get your Lordship at this young an age? It is not heard of."

"As per the rules of course. May I assume you already know them all?"

She fumbled, "Hem hem… of course. So my question regarding the case is this; why is it assumed that Sirius Black is the betrayer when he is not the secret keeper?'

"As you said, people assumed. It was not told who is the secret keeper and people assumed him to be."

"But why? Is it because he belongs to a dark family?"

"Of course not, it is because he was a very good friend of the Potters."

"Then why did they not make him the secret keeper?"

Harry smiled at her, "Intelligent person as you seem to be, you must have already deduced. I thank you for bringing this point to the audience. They did not make him the secret keeper because people would assume that he is and try to hunt him down. They would never assume that it is Peter Pettigrew, so that assumption would keep people from assuming it is him, and then he will remain safe and so will the Potters. Thanks a lot madam for making me clarify this reasoning. Can I assume that you already assumed his innocence even before the case started?"

Charlie started to snicker beside me, so I clasped a hand on his mouth while trying to holding in my laughter too. Harry has cornered her fair and square. She looked around for a minute, taking her time to understand the situation and then stepped back, "Of course Mister Potter, you may… assume that. Thank you."

The minister waited another minute before declaring Sirius free. He was to be returned all his titles and rights, and he was also given a heavy fine as a compensation and apology from the Ministry. But I did not listen to all that. My eyes were on one of my best friends; hope shining in his eyes and a smile brightening his pale face. He was free. He was back with us again.

**_Sirius' pov_**

My trial happened? It actually finally happened! I am free? I am free!

This was the thought that kept running through my mind as I watched the minister announce me free. I heard only the first sentence, the one I was waiting for since the first day I was chucked into Azkaban.

Oomph!

The rest of my thoughts were blocked as a nearly thirteen year old Lord ran into me to give me a long awaited hug. I hugged him back with whatever strength I had, wishing that this was not another dream and I won't wake up in that cold cell again.

"Hey godfather!" Harry pulled back and said that, looking straight into my eyes. His eyes had happy tears which he let them flow. "Let's get out. There is another pair of eyes waiting for you."

I tried to stand, but my weak legs gave out. Immediately, a pair of arms caught me and balanced me. It was Harry, my godson, my friends' beloved son. He gave me support and together we limped out of the court. Just outside the doors, Harry stopped, "Man, you are heavy. Oi, I am just a small kid. Mind relieving me of the luggage instead of just standing there wide eyed?" he joked.

I looked up to see a redhead, definitely a Weasley, and Moony standing there. They snapped out of their daze and came forward to me to support me and let Harry go.

"Hey Moony! Nice to see ya'."

"Nice to see your dog face too, Padfoot! It is looking even more like a dog now." He sniffed, "Man, you reek like a dog too."

I snickered, he snickered and then we both burst into gales of laughter; Laughter that had greeted me after a very long time.

We checked out of the Ministry as soon as possible, with only one pause when Miss Bones came to greet us. I watched Harry transform from a kid to a Lord, as he thanked her politely yet sincerely, and then back to a kid when he asked her about a professor's visit. I let it be. I had a lot to catch up and lot of time to do so. I was free!

I was taken to his aunt's house, where I freshened up and was fed. Then we sat down and they told me the complete story till now. Then, for the next few days, I spent my time with them, recovering. Paladin did not surprise me; I was only one who had seen him talk to a baby snake when he was but three years old. What surprised me was his ability to share his talent with me. It was heartening to see him grow into a strong person.

There was one very very difficult task assigned to us adults; which we were all postponing. Charlie got us all together before he left for his reserve.

"I know this sounds odd coming from me, but I need one help from you. It's more like your duty anyway. Duddley and Harry are growing up; they still seem unaware of 'The Talk'." He said with hands raised in quotes. Petunia coughed and hid her smile. "Please give it to them. Not only the general one, but one related to the magical world too."

"Why?" she asked curiously.

"Because I can see one witch interested in Duddley and many people, of both genders, interested in Harry. He needs to know so as not to be caught unawares."

This time her eyes widened "Both genders?"

We adult males were not opening our mouths from the beginning. Charlie gave a low chuckle.

"Yes madam. You need to know that it is very much common in magical world. Both marriage of same genders and also having more than one spouse."

Petunia put her face in her hands, trying to control her laughter. Remus threw a stone, "You are one of those many, aren't you."

Charlie smiled and looked straight at him as he got up, "Undoubtedly. Good day. See you next time." And he left, leaving us males red faced. We did not want to do that job.

**_Dudley's pov_**

Harry and I were returning from our chocolate shopping (I had to roll my eyes at his obsession with them) when we saw Charlie leaving.

"Hey Charlie! Leaving us for your dragon-kind?"

"Who else?" he winked at us and said his farewell. When we entered the house, my papa, Sirius and Remus were red faced and not looking at each other.

"Um, hi, we are back? What happened?"

My father and Sirius immediately welcomed us and literally ran out of the room. Mama laughed at them and walked away. Remus looked like a deer caught in headlights, but before he could run away too we both caught him.

"No, not without telling us what happened." Harry shook his head.

"I did nothing. Just…. Expect some talks in the near future, whenever they get the courage anyway, from your father figures."

We were gobsmaked and fell in the sofa. What the hell! We are just kids. It was sickening enough watching Mama and Papa kiss and flirt with each other; we didn't need to know about all THAT!

"I need more chocolate… lots and lots of chocolate." Harry groaned beside me. For once, I agreed.

Then onwards, there was a tension between the males in the house. Many a times, Papa would open his mouth to talk to us, and then he would hurry out of the room. Sirius and Remus acted even funnier. When they were in the room with us, they would keep signaling each other silently, but none of them would talk or leave. It got to the point that Harry and I stuck to each other and went out of the house whenever we could. All this amused Mama very much.

One day we were sitting in my room doing our respective homework when Papa knocked at our door.

"May I come in kids?"

We tensed, "Sure."

He came in and sat down on the bed, "Doing your summer work?"

"Yes papa!"

"Well there is something I have to talk to you."

"Yes?"

"You see, you are boys, right?"

We braved our hearts and nodded.

"Yes well…. Boys do… You boys should… perform well in your class. Only then you will get good jobs. Do your work. Bye"

He retreated hastily, leaving us with blank faces. We looked at each other and doubled up laughing.

Another time, we were eating our breakfast, after which we had planned to go to a movie. Sirius and Remus sat in front of us.

"Hey kids! All set for a movie?"

"Yeah, I am excited. This one has been a hit." Harry replied.

"Good. Will you bring back something for me?"

"Um sure, what would you like?"

"Anything from the theatre. I hear theatres have very good items on sale."

"They have snacks and such, that's it."

"Yes, pretty yummy snacks… ouch!" Remus had kicked him under the table. Sirius kicked his leg back and cleared his throat.

"Okay, you know that there are girls and boys in the theatre right?"

We tensed again. Will we miss the movie?

"Yes."

"Yes, well. Give them respect, okay? Remus also wanted to tell you something. Hey! Looks like there is no sauce on the table. I'll go search for it." He walked away from the table in a hurry. We sat there in silent humor, for I was holding the sauce up in my hand ready to pour it. Remus looked at us and smiled awkwardly. He opened his mouth, then thought for a bit, the drank a glass of water and wished us a good day before leaving. We sighed in relief at their departure.

Finally, after many many trials like these, Papa and Sirius teamed up and came to my room. Harry and I were playing a game of chess.

"Boys" papa said, "We have something very important to tell you."

"Yes, very important." Sirius nodded.

"But we don't know how to tell you the basics before giving the talk."

"No, we don't." Sirius nodded.

"So we have decided to give you this book to read on the topic."

"Yes, we have." Sirius nodded again. Papa rolled his eyes at him, "Sirius!"

"What? Yes, okay, right, so… ahem… read it in next two days and we will talk."

Both of them left the room. The book they had given had no title and was not much thick a volume. But the moment we opened it, we turned beet red. There was the title page inside with a picture of naked man and woman. I immediately pushed the book far away from us. We did not even dare to touch it.

Neither did we touch it the next day.

The last day before our deadline, I was looking for my music cd when my eyes fell on the book. I looked around, no one was there. Curiosity won and I picked up and opened the book, just to look at the picture that was on the first page.

"Hey Duddley, did you find… oh! Ummm… I'll come later."

"No wait, Harry, please."

"What?"

"Come on, I cannot do this alone. Today is the last day."

Harry hesitated, but nodded at last, "Okay, let's read it."

We both locked the doors and sat down on the bed side by side. Harry looked at me.

"Okay, we will read it very much clinically. We will be objective about facts."

"Yes, these are just male and female humans, they are around everywhere."

"Uh hun! Every adult knows these things."

"Yeah! Even we know the basics from our biology lessons."

"Yes, so we should stop procrastinating."

"and stop wasting time."

"and…." Harry buried his head in his arms before looking up and opening the book. There was that picture again. I did try to look at it clinically. There was a man with his dick, (gulp), I mean penis hanging out. There was a female with no panties (gulp gulp), there was a V there, and she was wearing no top either. There were two mounds hanging there. (gulp gulp gulp)

"Harry, please turn the page. I cannot look at them anymore."

Thus went our session. Oh, we did read the book completely. As much as we did not want to, we could not stop ourselves once we started. Neither could we stop shifting in our positions trying to adjust ourselves. This was not just a biology book. I don't know where they found it, but it talked about a whole lot of things like masturbation, what was a turn on, what could cause a turn on, controlling your turn on by various thoughts, attraction, lust and many more things, both from a female as well as male perspective. By the time we finished, our mouths were dry and our pants tight. Harry ran to his room in a hurry.

The next day, Papa and Sirius made us sit at the dining table along with Mom and Remus. We gulped and sat down. Papa started.

"Now, did you read the book?"

We nodded.

"Well, these were some things we could not explain to you effectively without biting our own tongues, so we compiled the information instead."

Sirius picked up from there, "But those are the 'how' part. What we want to talk today is the 'why' part."

Papa said next, "Now, you know you will have the urges from time to time as you continue maturing, there is nothing wrong with that. You attention will turn to girls, guys or things in that way, there is nothing wrong in that too. It happens to everyone. What is important is how you proceed with those urges and feelings. Self-satisfying, everyone does that and you need not be ashamed about it. But don't let your thoughts be consumed by these things. It is just a part of life and not your whole life. There are other things you need to concentrate on, like studies, friends and other activities."

Sirius then continued, "The second thing is the source of these urges. Never ever disrespect these people. You may feel like getting close to them or talking with them, but give respect to their wishes. It is not wrong to flirt with someone, but when it seems like they are not interested, do not turn flirting into harassment. Be in your boundaries. Being with you should be fun to them, whether they are interested or not, not a torture. I'll give you an example. Harry, your father was attracted to your mother. When he pursued her, she rejected him. But he did not give up. He used to step back when she refused his request, and then try again a few days later. This did not irritate your mother; she simply was not interested in the beginning. On the other hand, if he had followed her day and night, do you think she would have fallen for him later? You both understand, right?"

We nodded. Then it was papa's turn, "the third thing is someone pursuing you. Never, I mean Never, do anything against your wishes. As much as you respect others, expect the same back from them too. Do not hesitate to report harassment, and never bend down to peer pressure to do something. You are your own person and you have the right to your own choices. Okay?"

We nodded again.

"Now the last topic" Sirius said, "Harry, this especially pertains to you as you would be associated with the magical world. Duddley, hear this as you are connected to it too. You know about adoptions, right?"

"Yes. Taking someone else's kid as our own."

"In the magical world, it goes a step further. A family head decides the primary heir to his family title. It need not necessarily be the eldest child. Yes, even woman can inherit a family title. And two kids of a family can be declared heirs to different family titles, or in reverse, a single kid can be heir to multiple titles."

"Why are titles so important in your world?"

"Because of our association with magic. Every family has their own specialties, and in many cases, the family head has access to certain benefits that others of the family do not. For this declaration of an heir, the head has to transfer his power and rights magically through some oaths and declarations. I will tell about that when you grow up."

"What does that have to do with adoption?"

"See, that's the matter. Some families with no kids of their own usually adopt another kid as their heir. This is valid. And that's why, in our world, it is not looked down upon union of two males or females."

"You mean there are gay couples?"

"In muggle world, this may not be prominent, but in wizarding world, that is completely normal and not looked at weirdly. Think about it, you spend your time with a person you like, and can have an heir to each of your separate family lines."

"Oh" Harry wondered, "But why are you telling us about that? I am not against such unions even in this world."

"Both of you may have your own preferences. But your preferences aside, understand that you have a reputation Harry and that both of you are good looking and successful bachelors. People of both genders will pursue you. It is up to you whom you chose. All I wanted for you was to know this, and that you should not insult a pursuer. Reject them if you don't want to be with them, but never insult."

We both understood and nodded. At least, this talk has nothing embarrassing.

Sirius sighed, "Phew! Now that it is over, tell me, which side are you on? Do you like girls or boys?"

I spoke too soon!

A month before our schools reopened, Sirius was healthy enough, at least physically. He had mental scars and nightmares, but those would take time. What happened was that Remus received a letter from the Headmaster of Hogwarts. He sat still after reading it. Mama came and sat with him in the sofa. We too muted the TV we all were watching.

"What is the matter?" Mama asked.

"Petunia, how did a letter from Albus reached here? This place was supposed to be protected!"

Mama shook her head, "Lily wrote about that in her letter. Letters or people cannot reach us through the wards if I do not allow them, but mails can reach the others. The protections are such that the said letters should not have any tracking or location charms or any harmful objects in them. I thought it unnecessary to block your mail, so I allowed it. Should I not have done so?"

"No, it's okay. I was worried, that's all."

"Thank you. What is the letter about, if you don't mind?"

"This is from Albus. He is inviting me for teaching the Defense Against Dark Arts at Hogwarts."

"Will you accept?"

"Are you kidding? I just got my best friend back; I am not going to abandon him now. He is not even fully healed from that prison yet."

"Oi! I am right here." Sirius barked from the side, but he was ignored. Instead, Remus turned to Harry, "Harry! I am sorry I won't be able to spend time at Hogwarts with you, but Sirius…"

Harry shook his head, "I do not want you to leave him either, Remus. That DADA post becomes empty every year; you will get another chance if you wish so. But right now, I would be indebted to you if you keep my godfather company, while I cannot." Harry hung his head.

"I am still here, and I am alright." Sirius was again ignored.

Remus shook his head too, "There is no debt here Harry. You are still a student; go, learn and enjoy yourself. Leave looking after this dog to me."

Sirius sat straight in his seat and spoke loudly, "Attention please!" everybody turned to him, so he relaxed, "Thank you. Now, I thank you Remus for staying with me. As good as the job is, I do not want you in Dumbledore's clutches right now. You have just returned from living alone, you need to recover too. Another thing, I think we should move to Black manor as soon as possible."

"Why?" papa asked, "are you not comfortable here?"

Sirius smiled at him, "You have given me comfort both physically and mentally, Mr. Robin. Now that I am recovering well, I need to go back and look into the matters of my concern. As much as I hated my parents, Black family is a prestigious family in its own right, and many will be waving many concerns and pursuits at my desk. Also, I think Remus concern is right. As much strong protections Lily should have placed, there are geniuses out there who will be able to find loopholes in them. Let us not give them that chance. Moreover, you are welcome in my house anytime anyway, now that you have a floo connection. We will not really be miles apart or anything."

My parents agreed to his reasons and Sirius and Remus left in two days. They asked for at least a month's time before any visit, for they have to clean the place first. It seems that there would be many infestations from various dangerous bug-type creatures during the absence of anyone there. So after they left, Mama and Papa planned a visit to a beach resort for the weekend as a trip for the vacation. We agreed enthusiastically.

The visit went very well, except for one issue. It was a beach resort, means there was beach there and everyone visited it; in their shorts and bikinis, including us. The recent Talk was still fresh in our minds. One time, we were sitting side by side under an umbrella, wearing just our shorts too; we were uneasy looking around.

"Okay!" I finally said, "let us look at the people clinically and objectively."

Harry nodded, "Okay. Now we are males, so we are in shorts. Females cannot expose their breasts, so they wear bikinis." We blushed. I shook my head.

"Exactly! Objectively, that girl is wearing bigger size bra than that one," my member twitched, "and that guy's member looks a bit bigger than that guy's." Harry groaned beside me in embarrassment and I too closed my eyes and tilted my head back.

"Harry!"

"Hmm?"

"I observed two things…"

"What?"

"We both are studying in boarding schools… with no parental supervision."

"Yes… and?"

"Umm… all your friends are really good looking."

Harry hit me on my shoulder, "Thanks! I won't be able to look at them in the eye again." Then his expression turned mischievous, "You know, I noticed one thing too."

I gulped. "What?"

"Hannah writes a lot to you… and she has pretty good… assets on her. I consider her a sister, so it's okay for me. But you on the other hand…" He trailed off. My mind immediately flashed a picture of her and her assets. I hit Harry on his head, "get lost!"

Just as our playful banter was about to start, our attention was caught by someone greeting us.

"Hey boys!"

It was two women passing by us. They waved and winked at us, and walked on. Both of us covered our members simultaneously with the books in our hands, looked at each other and ended up laughing. God knows what wreck our hormones would cause from now on. This year was going to be an interesting one.


End file.
